


Explosion

by graytreason



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: Eventual Royed, M/M, Plot, Romance, Undercover
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-05
Updated: 2015-10-11
Packaged: 2018-02-16 05:54:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 27
Words: 103,496
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2258286
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/graytreason/pseuds/graytreason
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Disaster rocks the military at central headquarters and it's up to Roy and his unit to go undercover to catch the people responsible. A confession from one of his most trusted men and Havoc being Havoc makes sure this assignment doesn't go as smoothly as Mustang would like</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A reunion cut short

**Author's Note:**

> This is a story I'm currently publishing on FF.n  
> There are some minute cases of OOCness throughout the story but I try to keep it to the bare minimum.

This was getting ridiculous. Roy had that little hope that when he did get promoted he would be able to shift the mass amount of paperwork onto some poor newly promoted colonel. But instead his load increased tenfold with the also newly promoted Major Hawkeye delivering stacks by the barrow. There were going to be stern words with the new Führer, he was beginning to think the Grumman had done this on purpose. The man clearly never finished his own paperwork before the ending of the previous Führer were put in motion, when he was a General. It had been 6 months since then and central had finally returned back to normality after the brutal reign of the homunculus Wrath. New laws put in place, obviously with mixed responses. Military presence still remained the same but less strict, once again had mixed opinions. Roy knew that change was needed in order for the public to regain confidence in its military again, but there were still some strong Bradley supporters so resistance was going to always be present. He didn't need to worry about it though, each command post had the factions under strong surveillance, undercover of course, and reporting back if there was any cause for concern. Sure a few scuffles have broken out between both sides, but nothing on a serious scale.

"Major, can you please stop bringing more in when I've not even gone through the first pile." After watching yet another stack of paperwork being placed on the floor. "How the hell can you expect me to get this done on time?"

"Comes with the job sir, whether you like it or not you're the only general in the entire military." Before finding some free floor space to dump the files

"What if I can get someone to help me?"

"Forget it Roy, I'm not doing your work, I'm not qualified, sufficient rank and defiantly not paid enough to do something like that."

"I'm not the only General in the military anyway."

"Fine, highest ranking general, but I very much doubt you'll get the others to help you."

She had a point, there was no way on God's earth that Olivier Armstrong will come back from the northern border to have a cup of tea and to help out an old friend with some paperwork, she'll probably castrate him, and Roy needed his manhood intact.  
There was one other person he could ask, but would likely know the response of 'Get lost Bastard' or somewhere along those lines. He hadn't even seen him in the past six months, but like him he was promoted four ranks to Major General. The hero of the people, now also the hero of Amestris.

"Is Edward in central?"

Riza sighed knowing exactly what she had to do "Came back just this morning.." before walking out the door.

Roy sat back in his seat with a smile, hoping that for some miraculous chance that Ed would agree to help him with the seemingly never ending task of signing pieces of paper. The Fullmetal Alchemist has been keeping an incredibly low profile since that day, immediatly heading back to Resembool with his brother, successfully back in his own body again. He missed having the little guy around in a way, remembering him when he joined the military through the years they had some differences, but they made a great team. Yet with his goal completed as to getting his brother's body back he remained under his command. He gave the young blonde the chance to leave, all he had to do was sign the release form and he was free from the clutches of the military. Yet he refused, instead asking for a break from active duty. During that time no contact was made between the Elrics and the Flame Alchemist, he had to admit he was looking forward to find out what the blonde had done in his time away. He did feel guilty in a way after all Ed had only just returned to his post, and now Roy was hoping that he'd spend most of the day and probably night in the confines of his office reading and signing paperwork.  
A knock at the door snapped him from his little reminisce

"Yes?"

"You asked for me.." There was only one person who would talk to him so informally as that..

"Yes, come in Fullmetal."

Roy requested that he'd keep his military name, their enemies didn't need to know that the blonde could no longer use Alchemy. Plus just calling him 'Elric' like he called the rest of his team by their surname just didn't seem right.  
The door creaked open and a figure stepped through before the wooden panel shut behind him. Roy stared in disbelief at the young man walking to his desk. This was not the Edward Elric that left central six months ago. His height has increased significantly, no longer the little shrimp who went crazy every time shortness was mentioned in a sentence. Now standing in front of him was a young man brimming with confidence and a strong posture. Out from the sleeveless shirt his right arm, that was once just aluminium, carbon fibre, wires and screws, had finally caught up with his left in terms of muscle and build. His blonde hair in an plain ponytail stretching down his back, bangs framing his face perfectly.

"You know Mustang it is rude to stare.."

He snapped out of his trance as the young blonde man took his seat on the other side of the desk, arms folded in front of him awaiting what his superior officer summoned him for.

"It seems you finally started puberty Fullmetal." Ed glared at him.

_'Way to go Roy, first day back you want to ask for his help and you begin to insult him.'_

"This better not be you immediatly sending me out somewhere, I may not be able to use alchemy any more but that doesn't mean you throw me into a crappy assignment.." He looked at the pile of paper to the side of his desk before taking the top sheet and reading the contents.

"Major General Edward Elric, the Fullmetal Alchemist..."

Said person immediatly raised his hand up to stop him from proceeding any further. The only time Roy Mustang ever used Ed's complete title was when he wanted something that wasn't in the young blonde's job description. Ed was a genius, but even he didn't require his brain power to know what the general wanted from him. The evidence was all around him, and from the times he was just a plain young state alchemist he knew Roy had a problem whenever it came to paperwork.

"No."

The older man was taken back "I haven't even asked you..." He couldn't even finish his sentence before he was interrupted

"You don't need to, I can see." Replacing the paper to it's corresponding file

"...Please Ed."

The golden orbs widened with shock "Is the great General Roy Mustang pleading!?"

Roy broke eye contact and looked to the only clear part on his desk, following the wooden pattern with the tip of his finger, muttering something that would be inaudible to anyone else but Edward.

"Huh? What's that? I couldn't quite hear you?" Putting his hand behind his ear. It was clear he heard it, but he just needed to hear it once more.

"Yes Ed, I'm pleading with you."

The blonde smirked as eye contact resumed, he was going to milk this moment for all it's worth. There was no way this chance would come again.

"So what's in it for me?"

"My eternal gratitude."

He shook his head. Usually that worked against everyone else.

"A pay rise?"

No again. Who doesn't want more money?

"Another holiday?"

Nope. Who could resist that?

"A bye for any state alchemist exam in the future?"

No. Roy was perplexed, what person in their right mind would turn down basically having a free ride for the rest of their military service?  
There was only one more thing he could think of.

"...A...promotion?" Why he'd want another one would be anyone's guess. Both men had been immediatly boosted up rank by four. He didn't want to be a general too did he?  
Ed rose from his seat, placing his hands on the small empty part on the desk and leaned into Roy, who in turn leaned closer.

"What I want Roy is.."

The building shook followed by a loud rumble causing the paperwork stacks to topple and books to fall from the large bookcases. Ed stood up properly with concern on his face, looking around the room before looking back to his superior.

"Earthquake?" Roy picked up his office telephone in an attempt to ring someone, but the line was dead. It was a strong vibration, but surely not enough to affect the switchboard.

"I'll go find out." The General watched the blonde quickly head out the door in search of answers.

It gave Roy a moment to think, what was it that Ed wanted? He refused a pay rise and a holiday, any other soldier would have accepted those terms, heck even he would of accepted those terms if it was Grumman asking him. Roy's eternal gratitude should have worked, he doesn't give that out for free. It's a rare, once in a lifetime experience if the very own Flame Alchemist would offer something like that, especially over something so simple as paperwork. Thinking of paperwork he sighed knowing that Hawkeye would not help him re organise the mess that was scattered on the floor...what colour was his carpet again?  
Did Ed he want his own unit? His own personal assistant? He'd only just returned from his 6 month break so surely him just asking to do a bit of paperwork didn't make him want to nullify the contract? Ed was the best soldier he had, he didn't want to lose him.

The door suddenly burst open "Roy! East wing has completely collapsed!"

The General quickly rose from his desk "Evacuate all personnel immediatly and get them far away from this place as possible!"

The older Elric nodded and took off to evacuate the west wing whilst Roy took central.

Every office, toilet, storage cupboard and library were checked and cleared before another heavy vibration rocked the building, there was no way this was an earthquake now. Mustang's heart stopped in its tracks, he wasn't one to show his emotions but he was filled with worry and fear, Ed's search area had just been attacked. His search area was clear anyway, his legs moved as fast as they could no longer concerned for his own safety, but that of his subordinates. Before he knew it he had crashed into the very man he ran to search for.

"Shit, Ed are you alright!?" Quickly grabbing the fallen blonde's arm to pull him back to his feet.

"Apart from being bulldozed by you, yeah I'm alright. I got that side evacuated just in time and came to find you."

"Protocol says that when your area is cleared you also get out yourself!"

"Yeah well when have I ever followed protocol, I wasn't leaving you behind Roy!"

In any other situation Mustang would throw the book at him, but at this moment he was relieved that he was safe. He didn't want the long wait to find out if he was caught in the collapse or even killed in it. With East and West wing destroyed it was only a matter of time before the central part of the building would collapse. The two men headed to the staircase in a fast sprint through several joined rooms and into the library.  
The exit was in sight, but instead of running forward they were falling down.

The blonde coughed himself awake, slowly opening his eyes to be greeted by complete darkness. He wiggled his fingers and toes with no problems, at least he didn't have any broken bones.

"Roy?" He called out into the darkness in a hope his commanding officer was alright, but received no reply. "Roy?...Roy!?"

A groan emulated some five feet away from him "Sorry to disappoint you Ed...but you're not getting a promotion to general just yet.."

Ed moved to the voice before his hand connected with Roy's boot. "I don't want your stinking job anyway, you can keep it."

Roy chuckled before coughing out the dust from his lungs. Ed placed his hand to where the generals back would have been but was greeted with nothing but air. Ed began to worry, he was still laying down.

"Can you sit up?"

"No, my arm is trapped."

Ed found out that he was lying on his back. Feeling his way across the general's torso to his right arm, only to be greeted by brick and metal blocking the route any further than his bicep.

"It's not broken, I can move my hand."

Ed knew that they could do nothing until help arrives, as tempting as it was to get Roy to use his flame alchemy there was a risk that a gas pipe had burst and an explosion in such a confined area would have fatal consequences, and with one hand available he couldn't even use basic alchemy to get them out of there. The blonde felt around the area to the sides and above their heads gently as to not disturb any of the debris. To the left where Roy's arm was trapped there was nothing but metal, brick and wood, but to the right and above he felt a couple of solid wood structures.

"Saved by a couple of bookcases." He shook his head in disbelief.

"We should run into libraries more often." Roy chuckled before clearing his airwaves once again, hearing Ed sit back down next to him.

"How far do you think we've fallen?"

"Who knows, we could be near the top of the rubble with us being on the fourth floor or we could be on the ground floor with everything piled on top of us. All we can do is wait to be rescued, could take minutes...could take hours."

They sat in silence for a few minutes.

"Great first day back huh.." The general's voice broke the quietness.

"As first days go, at least it was interesting. Don't think many people can say they've had to evacuate a building and then survived getting crushed by rubble thanks to a library.."  
The thought that had been on Roy's mind came to surface. "You could be in Resembool with your brother, retired from the military and living your life. You hated it here. Why did you decide to stay after your goal was achieved?"

Ed took a few moments before speaking "Because yours hasn't been fulfilled."

Roy was taken back, he didn't leave because he wasn't Führer?

"Like Hughes, Havoc, Breda, Falman, Hawkeye and Fuery we were all still helping you to reach that. I promised on Hughes' grave I will help you, just as you helped me get Al's body back."

For the first time in a long time Roy was speechless. The loyalty his unit have shown to their commander was second to none, and now this is the first time Ed has ever said anything like this, the once immature brat had turned into a mature and respectful young man.

"We may have not been on the same wavelength and argued a fair few times, but as the years have gone by I've really admired your dedication and we've been getting along so much better. It felt wrong to just throw it all away."

"You're a valuable asset to my squad Ed, Alchemy or not it doesn't matter."

Ed smiled, not that Roy could see it and laid down next to him "Don't get all sentimental on me Roy."

"Look who's talking. At one point today I thought you were going to quit because I asked you to help me with some paperwork."

"As if. I just wanted to see you squirm, have to say I was quite surprised when you actually said please. I wish I had something to record that with!"

Mustang cursed the blonde mentally.

"Roy I told you why I've stayed and I'm not going anywhere until it's been accomplished."

"So what was the negotiation about then, just to see me make a fool of myself?"

"Yes...and no..."

Roy could hear the hesitation and uncertainty in Fullmetal's voice. "You were going to actually propose something?"

"I might have done, but there's no point now, forget it" He turned to his side with his back to The Flame.

He sounded..disappointed? That's not something that comes out of Ed's mouth often. Frustration yes, but never disappointed. Using his free hand he placed it to what he found out was Ed's back.

"You want to talk about it?" He received no reply "If something is bothering you, you know you can always talk to me about it."

Ed took a deep breath and rolled onto his other side so he was now facing Roy. Sure he couldn't see him but he knew he was waiting and ready to listen.  
"For years I've been asking myself if it was a lost cause...which is why I was going to put it forward as a proposition in that way if it was refused it could easily be laughed off as a joke."

The blonde stalled, thinking of a way to say what it was without sounding lame or cheesy but no matter what he thought of it all sounded bad. He was a genius, could tell anyone the complex theories concerning Alchemy, equivalent exchange, the components required for a transmutation, yet something as simple as this stumps him.  
Not far away they could hear the soldiers calling out for any survivors Roy called out to them verifying their position, situation and how many.  
Ed clenched his fist, irritated with himself for not being able to say it and there was only one option left and with time running out before they are rescued a moment like this wouldn't happen again.

"Fuck it.."

Ed sat up onto his elbow, it was now or never. His left hand skimmed the general's shoulder before finding a suitable flat surface. Now leaning over his superior he slowly brought his head down quickly running the tip of his tongue over his lower lip he proceeded until his mouth rested on top of Roy's. The feel was electric to the blonde, sending goosebumps all over his body at the realisation he was kissing The Flame Alchemist, Roy Mustang, General of the Amestris military, his superior and next in line to Führer. For years he wanted this, years he craved for just this very moment, even if he was rejected he would die happy knowing he got this one chance to embrace a man he's admired since joining as a state alchemist. Hiding his feeling he disguised it with anger, but the admiration for his man never left him. He wanted it to last much longer but it was best he pulled away.

"Actions speak louder than words, right?"

Ed shielded his eyes as light poured through the hole. He was now able to look around the confined space, over to where he first woke up. He came to terms that both men had a very lucky escape with Roy being just a tad bit unlucky getting his arm trapped.

"You alright sirs?" One of the rescuers called out.

"I'm fine, but the General's arm is trapped. It's not broken but I didn't want to risk a collapse." Ed called back.

More debris was pulled aside as the afternoon light filtered through before an arm reached out to the blonde.

"Come on Ed, let's get you checked out just in case." Havoc smiled, grateful that his superiors were alright.

Ed looked down to Roy, who's eyes never seemed to have left him since the blonde's moment of bravery. He was caked in dust, the once navy blue uniform now a blueish brown, dark hair now beige. What was going through the general's head he didn't know and wouldn't know for a while as he turned grabbing Havoc's open hand to pull him out into the fresh air.

Ed surveyed the area as he was lead to an awaiting ambulance. Central headquarters was destroyed, nothing but a pile of rubble where the once grand building stood. Placing one foot in the door of the vehicle he looked back as a group of five people carefully begin to move pieces of debris to free The Flame Alchemist.


	2. Ed's Turmoil

"Edward, how are you?" Cain Fuery called as he entered along with Havoc and Breda, saluting their senior before pulling up chairs next to the bed. They echoed on the pristine tiled floor. It was one of the benefits of a high ranking officer, if the need to be hospitalised arose you would get your own room free of the coughing and whatever else people would bring in to these kind of places. The memories of when he was younger in the waiting room being coughed and sneezed on from all angles wasn't exactly the most wonderful experience. There was always a chance you'd leave with something different than what you went in with.

"I'm absolutely fine. As soon as they finish some routine tests I'm free to go." In all honestly he was fed up with being prodded and poked, the quicker he got out of here the better.

"From what Jean said you and the general had a lucky escape."

Fullmetal laughed " Yeah so it seems, so I'd happily give you guys some advice. If you happen to be in a building that's about to collapse and you can't escape in time, head to the library."

"Yeah that was just a fluke." Havoc chimed in "I saw how small that space was. If either of you fell slightly to the left or right you would of been crushed. Heck Roy was lucky enough."

Maybe it was a fluke, but to Ed that moment released a new chapter either way in his life. Admitting his feelings to his boss by use of physical contact will either make Roy run for the hills, mind you even if he wanted to at the time he was trapped, suspend him for sexual conduct or accept who he is and they continue their daily lives like nothing had ever happened. He would dream that Roy would accept and begin a relationship with him but everyone knew what Roy is like. The womaniser, the chick magnet, the one night wonder..the list was endless. Ed was pretty sure he was with his new conquest only just last night, which didn't exactly make him feel better. He didn't care that the man was fourteen years older then him, he didn't care about rank, it didn't even matter that he was a man. Ed was sure of his feelings years ago and now that he made them known it was a relief and a huge weight off his shoulders..if was just the aftermath he was concerned about.

"How is the General?"

"From what we know his arms not broken, got a few grazes and grit embedded under the skin, bit of a cough but that was expected from the dust. We haven't been able to see him apart from Major Hawkeye, being his assistant 'n' all, but the guy'll live. But once again the heroes of Amestris have once again saved many lives, everyone has been accounted for in the central and west wings." Breda continued "The east wing did, of course, suffer casualties, they are still bringing them in. It is really crowded down there with worried family members desperate for info, but there are no reports of any fatalities at the present time. So all in all a lucky escape."

The relief washed over the Fullmetal Alchemist that everyone in the central military was alive. But he'd wish people would stop calling him the hero of Amestris. Only him and Roy had been given that title, but everyone helped. He was well known anyway what with being the youngest ever State Alchemist, not to mention being minimized by his younger brother in a full suit of armour..that attracted more than enough attention. He never bragged about being 'Hero of the people'. But one thing he was sure of was Roy using his newest acquired title to get even more women as well as having the title of General.

"Do we know how this happened?"

Fuery shook his head "We won't know for a few days yet, all we know is that there were three explosions, a high possibility it was a rebel group, but we can't rule anything else out at the moment until the investigation unit have finished their...well.. investigations."

The central headquarters investigation unit were the best in Amestris, fast, effective and incredibly efficient. Leaving no stone unturned they could solve a murder within a couple of days. Ed knew they'd get answers soon, but then there was another major problem.

"What's going to happen since central headquarters have been destroyed? How are we going to solve this? We can't just sit in a bar and work on something so sensitive"

"You'll be working at the General's house." Major Hawkeye walked through the door at just the right time. "He needs to rest, but is determined to catch whoever did this so he's offered his home as our office until central has been re built."

Havoc's eyebrows raised under his fringe "You know that will take a while right? Did the general hit his head or something? Fair enough his house is huge, but.."

"He's offering his dining room as base of investigations and six bedrooms, putting it simply we are going to be living there either until our office has been rebuilt or until the investigation is complete."

The thoughts that were flowing through Ed's mind..he didn't know if he could be in Roy's presence for so long. Even if Roy had accepted his sexuality there was no telling what would happen. Awkwardness defiantly, him being ignored was also a possibility, then again Roy may not even like the thought of Ed being there in the first place. As much as he wanted to be near his superior it scared him.

Within a few hours Ed was discharged on a clean bill of health. By the time he was discharged Roy was able to have visitors, but blonde made up the excuse that he was tired and started to head home instead. As much as he wanted to see his superior he needed to give him space to think.  
He took a detour from his usual route home to the site of where central command once stood. Walking through the cordon without the need to even flash his State Alchemist registered pocket watch, being known does have its perks. He remembered to back when he was younger he was even accused of stealing the watch to try and get a discount or no one would believe he was an alchemist and interrogated him, that was when he always needed Roy to back him up. Ed couldn't remember when the first time his feelings for the older man came to the surface but it wasn't that long into his military service. There was something about him, the smirk, the dark eyes, the unkempt hair heck even how bad ass he looked every time he readied his fingers to click and release his alchemy. There had been many a night where he thought about those fingers..but now wasn't the time.  
Walking up the steps to the building itself, it looked normal. The thick grey concrete walls were still standing complete with the flags over the archway, it didn't look like this afternoon happened, but when he walked through all he was greeted with was destruction. The wall behind the building itself at least remained intact, keeping the citizens of Amestris from having to see what became of the central structure of their great country. Multiple teams were still scouring under the rubble of the east wing for more survivors under whatever light was available as the evening sunlight began to fade to darkness.

"Major General sir!"

Ed turned to see who was greeting him "Come now Vato, I told you to just address me like a civilian."

"Ah..sorry Ed, I thought since so many people were around it would be best to address you formally. I take it you have been discharged from the hospital."  
The blonde nodded and smiled slightly before looking back to the debris "Any news?"

"There are around ten people still missing, no injuries that are life threatening at present. Six teams working on rescue and another three working on document recovery."

"Document recovery?"

"Main priority are the files in Fuhrer and General's offices."

A thought just occurred to Ed "Was the Fuhrer in the building?"

"No, luckily he was inspecting the new building work to his house at the time of collapse."

Figures. They always seem to be elsewhere when something serious happens..

"Will I see you at the General's home?"

"I will be bringing files from time to time but not properly until Investigations have found the cause of collapse."

Ed nodded taking one look at the rubble before turning to head back home. His excuse for tiredness was becoming a reality, but as soon as his head hit the fluffy pillow he was fully awake, unable to sleep as his mind went into overdrive concerning his superior. It was going to be a long night.

xXx

Within less than twenty four hours he was summoned to his General's house to begin their investigation. It was the first time Ed had ever been to Mustang's house. Past the gates and the eyesore of an eleven foot tall concrete wall with barbed wire lining the top was a thinly gravelled driveway. Rows of brightly coloured flowers of different species and hues lead the way to the grand estate. The lawn was a beautiful luscious two shade of green, freshly cut and thriving. Ed had turned down the chance to move into a bigger home, since it was only him with Alphonse living in Risembool and travelling the world there was no need to waste such a grand space. He stepped out of the car as it came to a halt in front of the house itself,the architecture was a work of art in itself. Six foot high glass windows decorated the ground floor whilst the upper floor were more of a reasonable size. Four giant Corinthian pillars made the porch leading to a stunning decorated the door with very detailed carvings of a forest, complete with animals, his fingers slid over the indentations able to feel every nook and cranny. Why did Roy need a house this big just for himself?  
'Compensating for-' Ed quickly removed that line of thought. Now was not the time to be thinking about Roy's crotch, and of the rumours that was no doubt spread around Amestris it definitely didn't mention anything being small.  
As the doors opened he slowly glanced around the reception. In front of him was a stone staircase spiralling both ways to the upper floors, there wasn't any artwork on the walls, just a few hanging baskets containing some more colourful flowers.  
Havoc led Edward into what would be their office for the time being. The dining room, consisting of one table able to seat twenty, right in the center. All spare chairs were removed with only seven remaining, spread out with three people on either side with one chair at the end looking down the entire length, knowingly Roy's seat. He looked around to find no sign of their commanding officer.

"Take a seat Ed."

Taking the last remaining seat furthest away from where Roy would be sitting he looked to the small pile of folders stacked perfectly to the side. Hawkeye stood from her place at the table to address her comrades.

"The General has to rest for a couple more days before he can join us. Each of us have some of the files that have been gathered from central command. Major Falman is leading the investigation as what happened the other day and will be bringing files from the site throughout the day. The orders from the General were to search through the files for any leads and clues. As we know the main suspects are the King Bradley supporters, but that may not even be true, but we have to wait for the cause of the collapse before taking any action."

They all got straight to work scanning page after page. Ed was taking notes before placing files on different parts of the table from irrelevant to highly important. As much as it pained him it was also a relief that Roy wasn't able to work just yet, that he didn't have to see him, but of course knowing that he was in the same building made the blonde anxious.

The day came and went quickly, Ed was driven home reluctantly by Havoc, the Captain didn't understand why he wouldn't want to stay in such a luxurious place. Not only was it going to be their place of work but the flame also insisted that the unit stayed there as well, he had enough spare bedrooms and it would make it easier on them in case they stayed later or even pulled all nighters.  
The blonde immediatly went to bed and laid there, staring at the ceiling. It was only a matter of time before the outcome of his actions that day would be revealed. How was Roy going to react? Was he going to fire him? Force him to leave? Accept him for who he was? Just pretend nothing had happened? Shaking his head he closed his eyes, central command was a pile of rubble, the ones responsible were walking free and here he was worrying about whether his superior would kick him out of the military. With the situation at hand they needed all the manpower possible, his own problem would be no doubt be solved after the investigation was over, or so he hoped. Roy didn't push him away or yell for even kissing him that was a positive, but then again it could have just been the shock of the situation... anyone would be. A colleague you've known for four years that you have helped develop from a nobody to State alchemist and through the ranks to major general. A colleague you trust deeply and help in a time of need then decides to let his emotions free admitting to you that he cares with more than just friendship. Was he acting immature about the whole situation? In a way yes, but it was the only way he knew, he'd never fallen for someone before and in a way hoped that he wouldn't have to again.


	3. Nerves

The long walk to Roy's mansion woke him up somewhat from the tiredness caused my a mere three hours sleep thanks to the never ending scenarios going through his head bracing for when him and Mustang finally talk about that kiss. Taking out his state alchemist certified pocket watch he pressed the top, letting the casing flip open. He arrived a bit too early before work started so he took the chance to explore and roam the gardens at the back of the house. He had to say it was a beautiful sight. The flowers were in full bloom, the colours complimented well together as blues sat next to purples, who in turn next to reds, a basis of the colour wheel primary and secondary colours, with each row of colour being a different tone from the one before changing from bright closest to the path to dark furthest away. The smells that entered through his nostrils were amazing, better than anything he had smelt before. He took a seat on a wooden bench situated in the center a few feet from a small fountain. He took his time admiring the sea of colour in the morning sunlight. It was one of the most stunning sights he had ever seen and one that will remain in his memory, maybe there was some perks of having a massive house to yourself. He closed his eyes and allowed his other senses to heighten, the sound of the water slowly cascading and the birds singing their morning tune was so relaxing, so much his eyelids became to heavy to open as he drifted off to sleep.

A gentle hand gently shook his shoulder, the golden eyes snapped open in realisation that he'd nodded off.

"It's very tranquil isn't it?" Major Hawkeye took the vacant seat next to him complete in military uniform. "But maybe a bit too relaxing it seems." Gently smiling at him

Ed rubbed the sleep from eyes and stretched "How did you know I was here?"

"Just happened to look out the window and see the ponytail. Thought you might like some company. "

"I came here a bit too early so I decided to take a look around and came across this place. It reminds me of back home in Resembool, the grass, the flowers. It's just one of those places you can forget your troubles and just relax."

"Forgive me for being blunt Ed, but are you regretting coming back here?"

"What makes you say that?"

"The fact that you said about forgetting troubles and relaxing. You could be living your own life in Resembool with your family away from the conflict and dangers being in the military. Your goal was achieved when you restored your brother back to his body."

Was everyone in this unit going to question his decision to remain in central? Slouching for his arms to rest on his knees Ed leaned forward remembering the moment with Roy, trapped under the rubble.

"I have no regrets. As much as I always have a connection there with Al, Winry and Pinako something keeps drawing me back to this place"

Or someone.. I've done what I wanted ... needed to do, the rest is up to him to decide.

They sat in silence looking out into the vast colours of spring for a few moments before the blonde female broke the peace

"Come on, we'd best go in. The others have already arrived and started." She stood up and Ed just nodded allowing her to walk on ahead before he quickly rose from his seat, placing his hands in his pockets before continuing back to the house. Movement from one of the windows in the upper floors caught his attention, he stopped and saw a figure looking out to him. His eyes met with the dark orbs of the very person he came back for. His face was blank, not giving the blonde any clue as to what his fate would be in the next coming days. Taking a deep breath he carried on through the house into the dining room and taking his seat unable to hide a big yawn as he began to resume his work from the previous day.

"Told you you should have stayed here Ed, less travel, good comfy bed, free breakfast.." Havoc petted his full belly "I could get used to this."

Fuery was quick to respond "Havoc now is not the time to be bragging, what if the General heard you say that?"

"The General did hear that.."

All heads turned to see the Flame Alchemist leaning on the door frame with his arms crossed and eyes closed. How long he had been there was anyone's guess.

"Sir, you're supposed to be resting!" Hawkeye demanded

"Resting because of a grazed arm? Thank you for your concern major, but we have a case to solve and I'd rather not lay in bed doing nothing whilst all my unit are searching hard for the perpetrator...Oh.. " He looked to Havoc "Don't make yourself too comfy Jean, as soon as there are four walls standing I'm sending you back to headquarters. My hospitality only goes for so long."

"Pfft, your hospitality would be endless if it were a woman."

Roy decided not to answer that remark and take his seat at the head of the table and began reading through the newest files that were brought in. These kind of files he didn't mind, he didn't have to sign the bottom of every page.  
Ed tried his best to concentrate on the typed sheet in front of him, but his mind and eyes kept wandering over to Roy. The unkempt hair that fell over his eyes, they way his white shirt had the top two buttons undone showing a small part of his collarbone. The sleeves rolled up just past his elbow showing off the bandage of his then trapped arm. His mind going back to that afternoon, the feel of his lips on Roy's own. He wanted to do it again, he was craving it, he wanted to feel the other's lips move with him. Someone coughed snapping Ed from his trance and causing the blonde to quickly scribble some gibberish down he had to be careful, he seemed to be showing his motives and feelings a lot more than what he should. He could probably bet that if someone catches him staring at Roy without a scowl there were going to be questions asked. One last time he glanced to his superior letting his eyes focus on the lips that his tongue just ran over lasting more than a couple of seconds a thumb came up and scratched just under the lower lip, the golden orbs snapped up to see the dark ones of his superior looking back right at him, still with that emotionless expression, maybe his brow furrowed slightly. But it was enough of a wake up call to resume his work and concentrate on the task set for him. It was clear Mustang wasn't happy with the sudden attention he was receiving.

Getting into late afternoon Falman arrived with more than just a few files. It took several car trips from the demolished building to the generals house to deliver them all. After ordering which files goes where he finally turned and acknowledged Mustang with a salute.

"I believe this is all of the relevant documents you need sir, the rest will be handled by investigations, they will share whatever information they come across if it will be an assistance to us."

Roy looked to the multiple piles covering the remaining floor space trying to make sense as to why he had so many.

"Major Falman, I asked for the files concerning people associated with Bradley or supporters that have been in our custody, I didn't ask you to bring the entire file system from central with you."

"Yes we did as you requested sir, that's those small piles over there."

Roy looked over to the much bigger piles covering over half his floor space "Then what are those about?"

"That's your paperwork sir."

The look on the general's face was priceless causing everyone but Falman and Hawkeye to laugh hysterically. The poor man looked like he just seen a ghost. "How have I got so much?"

"Well sir those piles there.." Pointing to the stacks closest to him "..were recovered from the remains of your office. And those piles there requires authorisation for the rebuilding of central headquarters including people involved, expenses, materials..."

Roy stood up rather dramatically causing his chair to fall over behind him interrupting the intelligence officer before he spoke further "That's the Führer's job! Why aren't you giving those to him!?"

"Ah...well...you see sir...for safety measures...Führer Grumman has gone away.."

"WHAT!?" The deep voice echoed throughout the hall, heck even throughout the whole house.  
"You are.. acting Führer.. sir..." Right now the major was starting to fear for his life as Mustang placed an ignition glove over his right hand and out stretched his arm, ready to snap his fingers for an attack. Havoc and Breda ,being the closest, lept into action to restrain their superior

"I only want to burn some of them!" He yelled out

Breda, using his brute strength, grabbed his arms and pulled them behind his back as Havoc battled to remove the ignition glove, which took longer than expected since Mustang balled his hand into a tight fist. With one glove finally taken the blonde then set his sights on the other glove, hidden in the other hand. Both men knew that wouldn't be the end of it and began to do a full clothing search finding spare pair of the white clothed gloves complete with the transmutation circle of his flame alchemy and a lighter. With themselves now feeling safe Breda released his commanding officer.

Havoc patted him on the shoulder "Just think of it this way Roy, you're Führer for the time being. Sure it's acting Führer, but Führer nonetheless!"

Fullmetal couldn't help but smirk at the way his face paled even more, as the onyx eyes stared in disbelief at his extra workload.

The day went by so fast that it was already late evening. The platoon had retired to their rooms for the day and Roy was left all on his own in a massive dining room surrounded by mounds and mounds of paperwork. His head rested on his left hand whilst his right turned the page after reading the contents. He didn't take note of anyone entering the room until a cup of coffee was placed in his line of sight. Quickly sitting upright thinking it was Hawkeye about to scold him for slacking when instead it was Ed taking the seat nearest him.

"I thought you went home."

"Well I did say that I'd help you with your paperwork so here I am." He grabbed the first file nearest to him and began to read.

Roy took a sip of the scolding coffee and continued on, thankful that he had an extra pair of hands even though it would still take them both a long time to even get through a couple of piles yet alone the fifteen on the floor. And since he was acting Führer he was going to get more piles by the day. He sighed and signed the final sheet for conformation to the action to continue before putting the file on a completed pile.

"When I am Führer properly I'm getting rid of all this paperwork business, this is ridiculous.."

"I agree with you, why do you need to confirm that you want central command re built and an excuse for a late library book?"

"Hmm.." Roy rubbed his chin "That depends how long they've had the book in their possession."

"..Two days...he borrowed it the day the whole place collapsed."

"His workplace fell to the ground, people are working non stop trying to find out what happened, retrieve any important information that would be bad if it falls into the wrong hands and he's worried about.." He looked over to Ed's sheet "..a book on plant life.." He took the folder and threw it across the room "Not on our list of priorities."

"You know you're probably going to get a report of every book damaged..from the main library to the three smaller ones"

Roy face planted the table with a massive sigh before they continued on in silence, the only noises were of pen on paper, page turning and thrown folders.

"Edward.." The blonde stopped halfway through his signature and looked to Roy who now had his hands clasped together in front of him on the table, his eyes looking down at the table. "..about what happened at headquarters..."


	4. Not what you want to hear

The moment the blonde had been waiting for had finally come, placing the pen down quietly showing he had his full attention, but his eyes never left the paper below him. What would happen? Would he accept him? Reject him? Would he be kicked out of the military?  
Roy took a deep breath and was about to speak when the door creaked open and Major Hawkeye walked in with two cups of coffee, placing them beside the two men.

".. thank you for helping me evacuate the building"

Their eyes came into contact, Ed knew that was not what Roy wanted to say. Before he sounded anxious and then as soon as Hawkeye walked through the door he returned to his normal demeanour.

"Think nothing of it, I wasn't going to let you do it on your own. Heaven forbid if something happened to you.. I'd have to be acting Führer."

Right now Ed could do was act like he always did and even though most of what he said was the utmost truth like if Roy had died...it wasn't something worth thinking about.

He looked over to his colleague "Major, shouldn't you be sleeping?"

"I have been, it is eight in the morning, sir." She pulled the thick curtains open to allow the morning sunlight in through the windows. The two generals squinted as their eyes were attacked as the lights were turned off as the natural source illuminated the room. Then the realisation that they were up throughout the whole night just signing paperwork and the only time Roy had to bring up their little coming together just had to be much too late for them to even talk about it. But since the incident had been brought up it now gave Ed the chance to talk to the older man in private. But wouldn't that be still putting pressure on him? Roy had to say what he wanted to say on his own terms. Ed didn't want to look like one of those desperate women that kept calling, begging the general for his attention, he hated people like that anyway.  
Soon after the rest of the unit walked in, taking their seats to resume the investigation. Ed had made his way back to his original seat at the far end of the table taking a sip of his coffee. What was most annoying wasn't that he's barely had any sleep since the night of his physical confession, and now since he had pulled an all nighter, it was just bad luck that Havoc came in all cheerful and loud.

"You guys seriously haven't been doing paperwork all night?" He earned a glare of daggers from each of his superiors before quickly taking his seat and getting right down to business.

Ed tried his best to get some work done, but eyes just couldn't focus and his brain was shutting down. No matter how many cups of coffee he had ingested his eyelids kept gradually shutting causing the words in front of him to separate and blur. His upper body was swaying every time he forced his eyes open once more, he couldn't think about sleep yet, not when they finally had leads that needed following as soon as possible, and there was no way he was going to have the team another man down what with Falman still working at the destruction site. He brought his right arm up to rest his head in the palm. It was also a ploy to hide his tiredness from the others, that worked for all the three seconds before his eyelids closed completely.

Roy kept looking up from his work from time to time, keeping an eye on the blonde major general after his fifth cup of coffee. He wanted to say something, tell him to go rest, go to sleep even, but knowing Edward's stubbornness we wouldn't admit he was even tired, even as Roy watched his eyes drooping from time to time. It was amusing in a way to see the nineteen year old fighting it. He began forgetting all about his work just to watch him slowly drift off to suddenly wake again. As much as it was entertaining for the General he wasn't going to take no for an answer any more when the blonde started resting his head in his hand. He usually did that when he was deep in thought, but it was a clear ploy of pretending his was working, mind you that pose didn't last long as he slowly collapsed, his head rested in his folded arms on the table. The raven quietly rose from his seat and walked over to Ed's part of the table gently shaking his shoulder in an attempt to wake him.

"Ed.."

He knelt on the floor next to him looking to his sleeping face. He was in too deep, nothing was going to wake him up. He rose back to his feet, gently pulling Ed back upright in his seat, folding his arms in his lap before slowly gliding an arm under the knees and an arm to support his back and he carefully rose with the younger man in his arms, allowing his head to rest against his shoulder.

"Which room has not been taken?" He quietly called out to the squad, who turned their heads in shock to see the exhausted blonde in Roy's arms.

"First one on the left." Fuery replied

Roy nodded and proceeded through the doors and up the stairs, Using his elbow to open the door to the unoccupied bedroom. Carefully he placed his subordinate on the covers, taking off his jacket before fetching a blanket to put over him, it was a fairly warm day he didn't want Ed sweating under the covers. He walked over to the window, opening it to let the fresh morning air circulate in the slightly stuffy room, looking out over the garden he saw Ed in yesterday. He sighed and turned round, leaning on the window sill to look at the sleeping younger man. So peaceful, so carefree. He stayed there for a few minutes deep in thought and allowing the events that had happened already during the four days since he had come back from Resembool. Ed had fallen for him and by the guess of it in a big way. Fraternization was forbidden, Ed knew this and yet he still kissed him. The Fullmetal alchemist, even though he wasn't an actual alchemist any more, was a valuable part of his squad, highly trained and a huge asset to the military. His knowledge was endless and he was so much more mature for his age. He knows he should report Edward to the disciplinary board but he knew what it was like to be in that situation, it stopped him and Riza being romantically involved. He stood to his feet and quietly walked to the door, opening it just enough to slip through and took one last look at Edward before closing the door shut.

Mustang slowly walked back, taking a deep breath before entering the dining room to rejoin his squad

"I've known Ed pulling all nighters before, but he's never actually fallen asleep at work."

Roy remembered to yesterday as he saw the blonde head slouched to the side as he sat on the bench before. Watching the events unfold from Riza waking him to their brief eye contact. Was he worried about coming back to the military? Was he worried about the repercussions of his actions? Was it something completely different? Roy didn't know but he did need to talk to him, he built up the courage to mention the incident yesterday but he waited too long now he would have to wait until Ed woke up, but even then trying to get some time alone again, maybe he'd still help him with the files that were growing by the hour...

At that moment Falman quickly burst through the door and saluted his superior.

"Wow Vato, someone light a fire under your ass today!" Havoc chuckled  
Roy nod his head allowing for the heavily panting man to stand at ease and speak

"Sir, I have the report from the investigation into Central Headquarters' collapse."

The air in the room turned from worry about the blonde currently sleeping upstairs to seriousness as Falman handed the report to the General, who quickly opened it and began to read the contents, skipping the non important parts and straight to what they needed to know.

"Significant signs that explosives were placed on the foundation pillars equivalent to the kind used for demolition."  
They all looked at each other in help for understanding what it meant.

"It was a controlled explosion, which is explains why the surrounding walls remained standing" Falman broke the stunned silence

"Inside job?"

"Might very well be, the person or persons who planted the devices would need access to the maintenance tunnels under the building."

"And they can't be accessed without going into the building itself." Havoc chimed in

Roy was visibly pissed off that there was still resistance in the military itself, they knew of the outside threat and that could be kept under surveillance, but now there was going to have to be yet another investigation into soldiers of central command.

"Havoc, Breda and Fuery, I need you to find information on all building contractors in Amestris including the ones who are currently working on headquarters themselves. Controlled explosions need an experienced demolisher. Falman, Hawkeye I need you to gather all profiles and information on every soldier, log books, military assignments, records, the lot. If it is an inside job I want whoever is responsible found quickly."

"What about Edward sir?"

"He'll be joining Hawkeye and Falman."

With everyone receiving their orders they were dismissed. Breda, Havoc and Fuery set off to gather the required information whilst Falman and Hawkeye organised the relevant documentation from the irrelevant from the stacks of files at their disposal.  
Roy was feeling the tiredness creep up on him and retired to his own bedroom to rest knowing it'll be at least a few hours before the the information they'd require would be at their disposal and the fact he'll be pulling another all nighter just getting through the everyday paperwork.

xXx

Ed's eyes slowly opened as the light from a full moon shone brightly through the open window. He was on a bed that wasn't his own, he didn't even know how he got there the last he remembered he was sitting at his place on the dining table trying to stay awake. He cursed himself for falling asleep in front of everyone, sweeping the blanket that covered him he made his way out the door and down the stairs removing the hair tie and tidying up his blonde locks before placing it back into a ponytail. The corridors downstairs were dimly lit but the light coming from the dining room was bright.

Roy was slouched with his head on his left hand slowly scanning the wording on the sheet below him when he heard the door slowly creak open. He snapped or a more alert stance believing it was Hawkeye when in fact he saw Ed walking up to the table noticing that it had been re arranged with folders lining up the middle. He took one and looked at it.

"You alright Ed?"

"Yeah was just a bit too tired is all."

He watched as the golden orbs scanned the contents of one of the staff files and looked at his superior questioning the reason as to why these files were here without speaking.  
Roy pointed to each file in turn

"Staff, assignments, log books, timetables and building companies." He handed the report that Falman delivered early this morning  
Ed replaced the file back onto its certified pile and took the one from his superior quickly scanning through the contents

"Shit.."

"My thoughts exactly."

"And there was me thinking that with Wrath gone this job would get easier. You want me to get started on these?" Nodding his head towards the piles  
Roy didn't need to explain the situation to the younger man, he was clever and quickly put two and two together,

"I'd rather have everyone work on it at the same time."

"Okay, so... where are they?"

Roy took out his state certified pocket watch and clicked it open "They'll be here in...six hours. It's two in the morning Ed, you've been asleep for eighteen."

Fullmetal sighed and took the seat nearest to him once more, pulling one of the small piles Roy had placed around him. Mustang knew he had to talk to him now whilst there was no chance of interruption

"..Ed..about that incident.."

"I don't regret it.." As he began skim reading through the pages

"But you know what you did is frowned upon in the military. I could have you court marshalled"

"You don't think I know that? I full well knew the risks but I went through with it anyway." Ed signed the bottom of the page quickly before looking to the older man. "But you haven't sent me to a tribunal, so what's stopping you?"

"Ed, you're a vital part of the unit. Your skills and knowledge are a valuable asset."

"You've coped six months without me easily enough." The blonde quickly replied

"Don't make this harder for me.."

"Make what harder? I'm only pointing out the obvious, if you needed me in those six months you would have phoned me. So what is the real reason?"

"This can't go any further." He stood from his chair and walked to the other side of the room to where his remaining paperwork were placed.

"This can't go any further because you don't have feelings for me or this can't go any further because you don't want to be in this situation again?"

Roy stopped in his tracks "How did you know about me and Riza?"

"It was obvious, the chemistry you two had was clear" Ed walked up to his superior "Roy...I need to know." He placed a hand on the older man's shoulder the dark orbs looked to what would have originally been the automail arm before looking away, keeping his solid composure. If this was the last ever chance the blonde was going to get he was going to take it. Bringing his other arm up he gently placed it on the furthest cheek, before bringing the face back to look at him.  
Roy looked back into the golden orbs, he couldn't answer him.  
Ed moved close, close enough to feel the Flame's breath on his lips. He wasn't being pushed away. His eyes glanced down half lid at the lips only millimetres away from his before making contact gently. The kiss was all of two seconds, he didn't get any reaction from his superior, but he never pushed him away either. With a sigh he took one more look at the Flame Alchemist before turning away. Suddenly his arm was grabbed and he was pulled backwards.

Roy's emotions were going into over drive. Spinning the blonde around against the wall he pinned the muscular arms either side of his head, letting his dark orbs trace every part of his subordinates features before pressing his lips strongly against the others. Ed's eyes widened with surprise at the raven's actions before quickly closing his lids shut, enjoying the electrifying contact between them. Time seemed to stand still as the pressure relaxed and their lips calmly moved together, mouths were open ,but neither took the moment deeper. Roy let go of Ed's arms slowly gliding his fingertips down the bare arms before placing them on his hips. Ed on the other hand snaked around Roy's neck and glided one hand to bury itself into the dark locks of his superior. Within what reality was a couple of minutes Roy pulled back gliding his fingertips along the sun-kissed cheek of his subordinate, watching closed eyelids open to once again reveal those stunning golden orbs. He pressed their foreheads together, allowing the buzz from their embrace to slowly fade back to reality.

"As much as I want this, and as much as I care for you, this cannot go any further."

Ed stared at him trying to make sense of what had just been said before looking at him in disbelief. His commanding officer had just pushed him against the wall, pinned his arms and kissed..no not kissed, made out with him, held him and now he was saying it can't go any further? Ed removed his arms that were still wrapped around the older man and and forcibly took the hands off his hips, pushing him away in the process. He couldn't say anything he was just too amazed of the crap that just came out of the mouth he had craved for so long. He shook his head and laughed, turning to walk out the room before he did something utterly worth it, but ridiculous at the same time..but boy would he love to smack the man square in the jaw. He stopped when a hand suddenly grabbed his wrist.

"Ed.."

He shook it free and turned to him, his face was all that man needed to see to know just what he's feeling right now.

"Ed..please understand if this gets out.."

"Oh I understand all right, it's all about rank. Poor Roy, can't lose his position being so close to Führer." He turned back and quickly opened the door

"Ed.." He was pleading now

"Do your paperwork yourself."

And with the slamming of the door, which may or may not have woken everyone up Roy was left on his own. Slouching against the wall he turned his head to look at the door, hoping for some miracle that he hadn't just messed up the years camaraderie and friendship with the person he had just embraced.


	5. Anger and Respect

In the days that passed the incident concerning Roy's answer neither of them talked. Mustang tried but Ed was having none of it, only speaking to him when it was absolutely necessary. Ed was now working with Riza and Vato looking into the military for any leads whilst the other three were looking into the building companies. Roy was left on his own pulling all nighters to complete the mass amount of paperwork that never seemed to deplete. He admitted he missed Ed's company during the quiet hours, it always seemed to go faster when he had someone to talk to.

_'Officers and members of enlisted ranks are strictly prohibited from personally associating outside of their professional duties and orders. Excessively familiar relationships between officers of different ranks are also prohibited, especially when between officers in the same chain of command. Unprofessional habits and favouritism that could affect the goals of the organisation leading to disrepute within ranks will lead to an immediate suspension pending further investigation before said person(s) are brought before a disciplinary tribunal which could lead to immediate dismissal and containment.'_

This one rule of the Amestris military was the cause of all this. A rule Roy had to obey to reach his goal, no matter how much he loathed it at this moment. But his feelings couldn't be put into action, he'd already gone too far by admitting them to the blonde.

xXx

The time had come to report their findings to the General.  
Roy took a seat to the side to be able to see the chalkboard that was placed at the head of the table. They had three possible targets, a soldier from central called Second lieutenant Scott James along with Major Henry Tafford and Colonel Geoffrey Barrett from East headquarters

"And what links these three together? They are from different areas." Roy found it a relief in a way that he didn't exactly know these people unlike the last time.

Hawkeye continued to speak "According to the files we have, nothing, but thanks to Major Falman we dug deeper into their history and they all have one person in common Brigadier General Edison."

The Flame had to refresh his memory "The one who worshipped the ground Bradley walked on, incarcerated in Briggs?"

"The very same."

He was pleased his team had found the perpetrators, this case was going to be a lot easier then what was anticipated.

"Okay, bring them in for interrogation. I'll head over to the north and meet the good brigadier general and have a nice little chat."

"That won't be possible sir." The words stopped Roy from rising to his seat and onto the first train to Briggs.

"Why not?" Hawkeye grabbed one of the folders placed in front of him.

"He was hiding a serious heart condition." She said as Roy examined the death certificate before him.

"Okay well we'll at least capture the others." He saw his assistant shake her head once more

"That's not going to happen." Ed chimed in, his eyes met Roy's for a brief second before turning to the others "They aren't in Amestris. I got in contact with their commanding officers. Barrett And Tafford were sent to Drachma a year ago and never turned in one report, it is unknown if they are cover was blown, AWOL or if they are even alive. Second Lieutenant James was sent to Drachma for intelligence gathering only five days ago, this assignment was set two months prior to the collapse, so there's the planning time, but he's not reported in to verify he's arrived at his destination. So it's also a case of cover blown, dead or AWOL."

Okay so this was going to be a lot harder then what was anticipated.

"And the explosives?" Now was the time for Havoc, Breda and Fuery to hopefully give him some form of good news.

"Ours was slightly easier. A company called Prassen Limited situated in Semoy, close to the Northern border had been doing some work in central over the past few months. The place is owned by a guy called Richard Prassen, fifteen years experience, thirty seven years old seems like your normal average builder." Jean stuck the picture of the company and their target on the board.

"But.." Roy knew there was always a 'but' when it came to Havoc.

"With more deeper investigation we found out that this guy was once a part of the military. Not much is known from the time apart from one thing he was under the command of our new favourite corpse, Edison. And as of five days ago Prassen Limited isn't a registered business any more and no one knows where the guy went."

It was too much of a coincidence. But as usual his team had done a fine job.

"So James has gone to Drachma and most likely this Prassen has gone with him. To possibly meet up with the other two, if they are still alive.." He paused for a moment before continuing "Top priority is to find out where in Drachma and when we do we are going in undercover. Everyone dismissed."

xXx

A week later they reconvene with their results. Using the Intelligence gatherers that haven't broken contact with central one came back with a positive sighting of Second Lieutenant James in central Drachma. On the request of Mustang he was not allowed to approach him on the off chance that he wasn't alone but to keep record of the places he visited or stayed and the people he met. With everyone taking their place at their respective part of the dining room table the plan was advised. The unit would split into three groups each entering from Xing, Creta and Amestris to convene at a public house in central Drachma. There they would split again and go to three separate inns and begin their investigations, meeting up every couple of days to report any findings.

"So who's going with who?"

Riza began to read from her sheet of paper "We have to be in groups that work exceptionally well together."

Ed was already not liking this idea.

"Myself and Kain will enter from Creta. Jean, Vato and Heymans via Amestris. Roy and Edward over the desert from Xing."

Yep, Ed definitely didn't like this idea. As much as he wanted to protest he had to remain professional, he wasn't a kid any more. Working in the military would mean you may have to work with people you don't exactly want to. For a brief second his and Roy's eyes made contact. But Hawkeye did have a point, him and Roy did work exceptionally well together in the past. But in the space of 10 minutes his relationship with Roy turned awkward. He loved the man, there was no change in that but he couldn't stand being in the same room as him and his selfish ways. But wasn't the blonde himself being selfish? Only really coming back to the military to be close to him, making him risk his job, his livelihood, for romance? Either way he was still pissed off with him for the way things were said.  
But he had a job to do, and any ill feelings would have to take a back seat, they were going into enemy territory undercover. One slip up and they find out who he and Roy really are Drachma would have the upper hand if war breaks out, a general and major general as their hostages would be an incredibly useful bargaining tool.

"Very well, each group will have Drachman documentation and entry visas so it should be easy getting in with the right excuse but you need to make sure your stories match word for word."

With that the two other groups saluted and took their leave, him and Ed were the only souls remaining in the dining room, the blonde still remained in the seat furthest away refusing to make eye contact.

"The best thing would be that I was your interpretor."

"Can you even speak Xingese?"

"A hell of a lot better than you, I haven't been sitting on my backside these past six months General." ..That sounded rather malicious...

"Putting it simply, you were going to head to Xing to trade for your shop, which sells various... knick naks. Since you don't have a good way of words in plain English.."

"Ed" Mustang tried to interrupt but it fell on deaf ears

"..I had to tag along so you don't make a complete fuck up of anything else." He finally looked to his superior in the eyes as a breathy laugh escaped through his nose before quickly getting up and leaving the room.

Roy sadly sighed and sat back in his chair. It was so easy letting a woman down, but this was Edward, a male for starters. A well trusted colleague who had fought tooth and nail for the country and it's people, a genius beyond recognition.

'As much as I want this, and as much as I care for you, this cannot go any further.'

His words ran on a loop in his mind, he had to talk to the blonde they couldn't carry on like this. He stood to his feet and proceeded to the Elric's bedroom, knocking gently he received no reply. Slowly turning the handle he looked inside to see the bed empty and still made. Opening the door wider he stepped in and proceeded to the window to see if the blonde had decided to go for a late night walk. The full moon shone so elegantly over lush grass and beautifully bloomed flowers that lined the twisting paths. It was so bright he could tell the colours of each of every petal, but no light revealed the sunset blonde locks and golden orbs of the major general. It was probably best to let him be, as much as they needed to talk this is what Ed did to calm down since he didn't have his brother or Winry to rant to.  
Leaving the room he went to the kitchen deciding that he wasn't in the mood to continue his work, he needed a drink. He needed something different as he looked into the fridge, pulling out a bottled beer that were only really used for guests if scotch wasn't their forte. Twisting the cap off he took a swig before heading to the lounge, opening the door to find the one person he had been looking for leaning forward on the couch staring into the crackling flames in the fireplace.  
The blonde turned his head as the door opened and looked at him for a couple of seconds before looking back to the many reds, oranges and yellows the flames were producing.

"You want me to go?" Roy cautiously asked

"It's your house.."

The general slowly stepped in a shut the door behind him, taking a seat on the other couch just to the side of the state crested coffee table before taking a sip from the bottle. It was an awkward silence, Mustang didn't know what to say or even where to even begin

"Bit strange for you to be drinking something with such a low volume of alcohol.."

The Fullmetal's voice snapped Roy out of his dilemma, well it was at least a start.

"I've got an awful lot of paperwork to do, I'd rather not have something so strong that I'll start nodding off."

"You mean like that time Major Hawkeye found you at your desk in a puddle of your own drool?"

"You know about that?"

He nodded "And that you had most of the contents of that sheet transferred to your face."

Well this was rather award for the General, he'd thought that would have been one of the things he'd take to the grave, but at least it was an things had to be said and Ed was the first to begin..

"Why did you do it? Why did you kiss me? Why did you suddenly decide to kiss me and then tell me that nothing else could happen?" Ed's voice rose during the final question.

"I kissed you because I needed to"

"You needed to?"

"I needed you to know how I felt too"

"You know instead of being physical there was no harm in saying 'Hey Ed I have feelings for you, but we can't be together.' Surely you've been with enough women Mustang to know the right thing to say."

"Says the state alchemist who did exactly the same thing when we were trapped"

"That was just a kiss, not a full make out session and when I did it it was with intentions to carry on, not to turn someone down! You know having feelings for me and then sleeping with all those women is a bit fucked up don't you think? Maybe it would have been better if you just court marshalled me and not messed with my head."

"You think I want that? Ed I really care for you and for your information I haven't slept with a woman for a couple of years because of this."

"Oh so I'm the reason why you're sexually frustrated is it? Well thanks General, that makes me feel so much better."

"No i'm saying you're the reason I don't want to sleep with anyone else."

Ed didn't retaliate this time, the words that have been spoken repeated in his mind. Roy's feelings were clearly strong for him.

"Ed I know kissing you was the wrong thing to do in that situation, but I couldn't help myself. As much as I want to be with you, I can't. I'm not going to court marshal you I'm not going to send you away. I want you here. Even if it means that we can't take this relationship the way we want it to"

During the whole confrontation Roy never raised his voice. Ed was looking for an argument and he wasn't getting one, instead he was listening his superiors heartfelt words. He was being childish, he was supposed to be a grown man, and now was the time for him to mentally grow up.

"Edward.."

"...yeah." He finally spoke up

"I'm sorry."

"If you keep this up I'd be very concerned, first begging to help me do paperwork and now apologising? Who are you and what have you done to that bastard General with a god complex?"

Both of them laughed before Ed shifted down the sofa, quietly signalling for Mustang to take a seat next to him, who was hesitant at first but took up the remaining space.

"I know the reasons as to why us can't happen, and I'll apologise myself for getting angry over it. I have to admit I hadn't been sleeping very well since my feelings were known and I didn't know what would happen between us. I don't regret kissing you.." He takes the beer bottle from Roy's hand and takes a sip before handing it back. "I just wished you worded it a lot better."

"I wished I did too...But in all honesty I didn't regret it either."

Ed smiled as he took another sip of beer and passed it back once more "...I'll let it slide that you had already broken that big rule when you admitted your feelings to me. Have to say I can see why you have such a reputation."

They both laughed

"What you experienced Ed was only a taster."

"And how I would have loved to taste more.."

Queue another awkward silence as Roy looked startled at the boldness of Ed's statement, who in turn may have just realised too late it was to take that back. Fullmetal looked away mentally cursing himself at the rather forward proposition, it was Roy's time to break the silence.

"With the rule breaking, yes I did technically break it when I kissed you, but we can't risk it again." No matter how enticing the younger man was with that previous statement.

Ed turned back nodded as they reached a mutual agreement. The blonde always flouted the rules but even so he was going to respect Roy's wishes no matter how much he didn't like it. Both men had confessed their feelings but he wasn't going to push Roy into doing something that would make him uncomfortable and panic if he ever heard footsteps or distant voices... just like when the lounge door clicked open. Mustang quickly looked to the door in the hope that no one overheard them to see it had just unlatched.  
If anything were to happen between them from now it would be up to Roy.

"So..you want to re think our undercover story?"

Roy thought for a moment, technically the words that were said were directly aimed at him from Ed's spite at the whole romance situation.

"It can stick, it gives me an excuse to be rude to people without realising it. How much Xingese do you know? Are you fluent?"

Ed released a laugh that was wanting to escape since he said it and said something out that Roy couldn't even begin to understand giving the blonde the most clueless look he'd ever given anything, which made him laugh more.  
It was a look that if they were more open with their surroundings Ed would have taken that moment to kiss him once more, a craving that hasn't stopped since he first felt his lips on his superiors. It was going to be a craving that he'd have to suppress every time he saw, heard or smelt him.

"I lied, I'm not fluent, there are only two phrases I know. All I said was 'I'm sorry, my friends drunk' and the other can wait for another time."  
Before Roy could reply his eyes followed as Fullmetal stood and walked to the door

"Come on, your paperwork isn't going to do itself."

He smiled as he rose and followed the younger man back to the dining room.

"There is one thing that's been on my mind, how are we disguising ourselves? I mean, we are two of the most well known soldiers in Amestris and no doubt on the list of capture on sight, what makes you think the forged documents and a wig are going to be enough?"

Ed wasn't one for questioning his assignments since he grew up, but they were going into a country that isn't exactly happy with Amestris' existence. Treaties were always broken and the Briggs fort had their fair share of scuffles. It was one of the reasons Olivier Armstrong barely came to central..it was also a brilliant excuse to keep her away from her brother, we all know how flamboyantly loud he can be..

"You do have a point Ed, but recent research has come up with a helpful plan, I'd rather explain it to the rest of you but it is more fool proof than a wig. And our fake identities and documentation is coming straight from Drachma itself via one of our investigators. The only thing we need to worry about is everyone getting their stories correct."

"Will we get to see the great Roy mustang with a beard?" It was a curiosity thing, no one had ever seen the man with anything but the smallest amount of stubble. He always said that it wouldn't suit him and would scare the women away.

"Don't push your luck." Roy stood and begun to follow Ed, shoving him through the open door back into the dining room.


	6. Jealousy

Five days later and two in the morning they all gather in the dining room for the final touches before going undercover, all filed in already in their civilian clothing that was each specifically assigned to them. Taking their seats they waited for the General to enter.  
Havoc, Breda and Falman were dressed like workers in dusted overalls with a matching peaked hat and what used to be white shirts underneath now a dusty brown. Hawkeye and Fuery were in everyday Drachman clothing, nothing much different to Amestrian every day wear. Ed himself was fairly smart with a dark jacket and pants over a crisp, white shirt. Each outfit corresponded with their stories yet each mid sized suitcase they were given contained everyday casual and smart wear, hoping it was enough to see their mission through to the end.  
All eyes turned as Roy walked in, like Ed, wearing a sharp, crisp suit. But with an unknown, yet rather attractive, woman right behind him. Long, curly black hair loosely fallen around her shoulders, hazel eyes but Ed could easily guess that every other person in the room were concentrating on her chest, which didn't seem to fit properly in the standard military attire.

Both stood at the head of the table before the acting Führer addressed his subordinates

"Everyone, this is State Alchemist Sarah Vickers. She only joined the ranks of the military four months ago, but Investigations have sent her to make us unrecognisable to even the closest we know."

"Don't mean to be rude general, but we do know how to put a wig on." Breda tried to look serious with his arms folded obviously in an attempt to see if she was one for the big muscular types. But it made Ed smirk knowing that his comment probably just insulted her instead.

"Actually.." Her voice was soft, yet stern "..My Alchemy is rather unique, which is why I was chosen for this."

"It's probably easier showing them than explaining." Roy released his trademark, the smile that made all the women go weak in the knees, and it was clear to Ed that she fell for it.

From out of her satchel she pulled out a folder, skipping through the pages before sliding one of the pages out and placing it on the desk a carefully drawn transmutation circle.

"Right, I'm going to need a bowl of water."

Havoc jumped at the chance as she fluttered her eyelashes at him, coming back in probably the quickest time in existence. Taking the bowl from him she carefully placed it on top of the transmutation circle before turning to Mustang.

"General, care to be the first volunteer?"

"I'd be honoured to." Gave some sort of respectful bow like a butler would do to his master.

Edward had barely met the woman and already hated her. Her breasts, her face, her hair, the way her eyes flirted with every other man in the room, the clear attempt of seduction in her voice. It was making him sick that people flaunt themselves like that, and mostly towards Roy. His Roy...well not properly his, but close enough! The man had admitted his feelings, kissed him and held him, yet here he was clearly flirting and working that well known Mustang charm. The blonde was never one to be jealous, but the way of it all just intently pissed him off.  
Sarah placed her hands just above the paper before gently pressing them to the transmutation circle turning the dark lines an illuminating yellow as some sort of alchemic reaction happened with the water. She ushered Roy to the bowl, placing his hands either side of the bowl for support he leant over the water as 'Chesty', what Ed began to call her now, filled a cup with the liquid before pouring it over the General's head.  
As soon as the liquid touched his hair the raven locks turned to blonde eerily similar to the Elric's very own. Soon enough the once dark locks had gone, towelling the hair dry he looked to his colleagues who were staring in disbelief.

"This is my Alchemy, it's not a lot, but.." She turned Roy towards her as she dipped her finger into the water to run the digit ever so slowly over each eyebrow. She was so close to him he could no doubt could smell the mint on her breath or the smell of whatever perfume she was wearing. "..it will help you immensely." Instead of pulling away there she remained in close proximity to the flame.

This was irritating the natural blonde to his core. Never had he been so pissed off at one person before and he didn't even know her!

"If you two have finished drooling over each other we have a mission to prepare for..."

The voice that broke the 'moment' wasn't Ed, but Major Hawkeye, and just like that Roy backed off knowing that the hand he couldn't see was sitting no so patiently on her gun ready to shoot some sense in to him. Ed mentally thanked her for saving him from a very awkward outburst.

Chesty shyly smiled before addressing the rest of the platoon "So with the hair and eyebrows done, in some cases facial hair." She nodded to Falman, Breda and Havoc...if you could call Havoc's goatee facial hair. "But even that may not be enough, especially to the clean shaven men like Roy, who is well known throughout the land."

All this flirting was making Ed feel sick. This was just ego boosting for the older man and no doubt he was going to milk it for all it's worth.

"Not forgetting this guy, he's just as popular, if not more!" Breda gave him a light smack on the back

The blonde and Sarah exchanged glances. Ed smiled sweetly but was staring daggers at her. There was a few seconds of silence before she continued

"Oh yes, and Fullmetal of course."

She was so focused on Mustang she didn't even see that he was in the room! Not including that fact that she was already on first name terms with her superior.

"The face will still be recognised by the sharpest of eyes, which is exactly what we are going to change." Reaching into her satchel she pulled out several small jars. "In here are special lenses which are placed over each eye, changing the colour of your iris..."

One again done Roy was the test subject as he sat in his seat with her hovering so close to him..well as close as her chest would allow. It was at that moment Ed decided to up and leave quietly out the other entrance to the dining room, surprisingly able to just slip through without disturbing the mounds of uncompleted paperwork that littered the floor.

Helping himself to a scotch bottle and glass the blonde sat in the lounge where only the few nights before they had finally cleared the air. No fire this time, but the lamp on the side table provided a dim glow to the room. He had never been so relieved that someone stopped two people getting close, he was on the verge of making a scene which would have caused some very intimate questions to be asked. He gulped down the scotch in the glass allowing the strong taste to burn down his throat before pouring himself another. The door creaked open but he chose to ignore it, whoever was checking up on him wouldn't get anything out of him, he hadn't even thought of an excuse why he left and why he was drinking in a completely different room.

"You do know we are going to be doing a lot of travelling within a few hours.."

"A couple won't hurt Roy.."

He lift his head to look at his superior but was taken back at what was standing there. Smartly dressed like he was, styled blonde hair on a side parting combed smartly and not hair out of place. He kept glancing over the person's features before his golden orbs locked with azure, they were mesmerizing to say the least.

"I can tell from your body language that you couldn't tell who I was."

The natural blonde looked back to his now refilled glass and took a sip on purposely avoiding to answer

"Why aren't you with the others?" He asked sternly whilst Roy's reply was soft

"Because I came looking for you."

"I'm touched..." Ed swirled the amber liquid in his glass before taking another sip

Roy grabbed a small glass from the cabinet and sat next to the natural blonde, pouring himself a drink of his own. "What's wrong Ed?"

"What made you think anything was wrong, you didn't think I might just want a bit of peace and quiet."

"The tone in your voice says differently."

He had to admit Roy was a lot better than anyone else when it came to noticing what mood he was in.. well apart from Winry and Alphonse of course.

"I'm sure Chesty would be concerned as to where you are."

"Chesty? You mean Sarah?" He paused for a moment to think of why the woman was mentioned "Why would she be concerned?"

"You serious? They way you were both all over each other openly flirting and touching I'm surprised you haven't ripped each other's clothes off by now. It's nice to know you've gotten over your feelings for me so quickly that you are more than happy to do it in the same room."

Shit. Did he just admit to Roy Mustang he was jealous? This would clearly inflate the bastards ego..

"Ed, I never touched her and at any point did I want to. As for the flirting you know what my reputation is like, if I didn't flirt then people would ask questions, then what would I say? Sorry my feelings towards my younger, high ranking, male subordinate are much stronger then what any woman could ever even attempt to achieve."

Great, now Ed really did feel like an idiot as he stared at the amber liquid swirling in his glass. What he didn't expect was Roy's hand to cup the side of his face and turn the head back towards him. Golden orbs locked with azure once more. As much as Ed knew this person was Roy, the physical appearance was that of some stranger. Gone were those beautiful dark eyes that pierced right into his soul and messed raven hair, two features that Ed always looked at and admired.  
He focused on the mouth, one thing that didn't change, at least that smirk would still be around.

"I preferred the raven coloured Roy Mustang.." sounding rather sad

There it was, that smirk. He had to re direct his eyes, just that smile was enough to send the Fullmetal's hormones into over drive. This would be as far as Roy goes, no matter how much Ed craved the feeling of that mouth on his. Would he dare try to kiss those lips again after they mutually agreed not to take it any further? It was then he realised that the older man's hand was still cupped on his face. His digits were soft and soothing as Ed turned his face into the hand, taking in a deep breath, inhaling the scent of the man in front him before placing a quick kiss to the palm. It was better than nothing at all. If anything were to happen between them it would be Roy that was starting it.

"How am I going to get used to this new you?"

"Ed you make it sound like I've completely changed with a new personality, but i can assure you it's just the outside that has changed. Besides you haven't seen the completed product."

Ed's brows furrowed in confusion and head turned slightly in curiosity as Roy's hand left his tanned skin and into his shirt pocket. Fullmetal really wasn't ready for the next part as his superior pulled out a pair of spectacles and placed them on the bridge of his nose. A nasal snigger escaped before he smacked his own hand over his mouth, but the sniggers kept coming before he couldn't keep it in any more as the sound of laughter filled the room.

"You look like a librarian!"

"I'm supposed to look like a highly respectable shop keeper!" He tried to be serious but it was failing miserably

Ed laughed so hard he was crying. Roy didn't mind, in fact he was laughing along with him, before deciding that he'd best take them off again before Ed died of oxygen starvation.

"Don't think you're out of the woods yet Edward." He helped the blonde to his feet "You still need to go through your transformation, but I can tell already that I'll prefer the blonde coloured Edward Elric." He smirked that smirk once again as he part recited Ed's previous words to him.

The young man smiled, quickly downing the rest of the scotch before swiftly following his superior back to the dining room.

They crept in as quietly as Ed originally left, but it wasn't that long before attention drew on him

"Major General."

It was his turn. He heaved himself out of his chair and walked the length of the table to where Sarah stood, going through her folder once more for his specified transmutation circle. His eyes looked to Roy who was standing in the corner observing out of the way, back in professional mode.

It was time for his own transformation to begin as the piece of paper was placed under the bowl. With a place of the hands the lines began to glow before the soon-not-to-be blonde placed his head over the water, his long hair connecting with the liquid giving him first view of what his colour was, before he felt the warm water glide over the back of his skull.


	7. So much for it being easy

Everyone was ready, everyone was prepared and everyone... didn't look like themselves. It was strange to say the least as Roy placed the relevant documentation on the dining room table.

"Identifications, remember your new birthday and name." Pointing to the neatly placed cards before unfolding the bigger piece of paper "Drachma citizenship papers, don't lose this before entering."

"Frank Bywater." Now the official alias of a now slick black-haired, green-eyed Jean Havoc. He picked up his relevant documentation and examined it "You sure this is going to work?"

"As sure as an intelligence officer working in the Central Drachman citizenship department. But you, Breda and Falman have a special ones since you three are entering from Amestris. You don't need to change your story, those papers also say you have been on an intelligence gathering. So with a bit of luck you'll be ushered through quickly. But if anything does happen Falman will be able to take care of the situation."

"Sir" The man in question saluted. Now with a full head of incredibly light brown hair tied back into a very small ponytail complete with beard.  
A skin head Breda with a rather impressive brown beard and golden eyes handed his two colleagues their suitcases, thickly padded coats and shoes. Him and Falman looked like the kind of people you didn't want to run into in a dark alley. Havoc, on the other hand, looked like their victim, especially with the strange little goatee that would usually be seen on a teenager.

"We all convene at the Black Panther public house in central Drachma. All Amestrian borders have been made aware that soldiers will be crossing, but don't know our identities, just hand them these cards and we'll be granted access. In your cases hidden away is a bottle of liquid, this is to keep your hair it's artificial colour whilst we are away." He gave out what looked like a business card to everyone which just had the word 'Junale' over the faint the military insignia. "Breda, Fuery, Havoc you three will be the first to leave. A car is waiting for you outside to take you to the station."

The men saluted, collecting any remaining documentation, and took their leave.

The four remaining sat in silence preparing themselves for what was about to come. It was going to be dangerous, but it would be worth it when they bring the four people responsible for the collapse of central command to justice.

They all watched as the excessive paperwork meant for the Führer was taken away. Grumman had returned and Roy left him a wonderful parting gift by sending ten rather large piles back, most of them naming every book that was stored in the library. At least he did the main important documents concerning the reconstruction of central headquarters, temporary relocations and sick leave for the poor soldiers who were caught in the East wing collapse. There were a few serious injuries, but no one was any longer in the bracket of life threatening.

After a five-minute wait brunette and green-eyed Riza and copper haired, brown-eyed Fuery took their leave. Leaving just Roy and Ed to wait for their departure time.

"Should we have gone first? We do have to trek through the desert.." Leaning on the table not far away from his superior

"We'll have transport through it all, we just have to go far out from Amestris before turning and heading to Drachma. Havoc, Breda and Falman are walking a large distance to Briggs before they can even get transport. Hawkeye and Fuery have two check points to pass, but they can use the train. But if estimations are correct we'd all meet up again by tomorrow evening."

Roy took a seat and looked over Ed's features. The mahogany coloured hair actually suited him, just not as much as his natural blonde. Instead of bangs it was completely swept behind into a braid Ed used to do so well. He was glad in a way that Ed got rid of his little antenna during his time away since he was now the same height as the flame. If that silly thing remained he'd have got the scissors or even scorched it off.

_'How am I going to get used to the new you?'_

He now understood what Ed meant, doing his best to look at the teal eyes through the dark sunglasses.

"Sarah's done a good job on all of us."

"I'm surprised you haven't jumped her." Still a bit of jealousy crept in Ed's voice.

"The old me would of..if she wasn't in the military, but there's someone who has recently stopped me in my tracks and I'm more than willing to wait however long it takes."

"That was...cheesy." Ed felt his cheeks heat up.

"Yeah, but worked like a charm if the tone of your face isn't a helpful hint."

The now temporary brunette threw a file at his superior "Do some paper work or something."

"But I like the view I've got now." Giving the oldest Elric a textbook smirk. It was nice that they could openly flirt without the worry of getting found out.

"Will you shut up! Anyway isn't this a form of fraternizing? You're breaking your own rules Roy.."

"There is no physical, romantic contact, just harmless flirting. Besides since when was it ever my rule? Last time I checked it was military order"

It wasn't harmless from where Ed was sitting, the younger man was really holding back wanting to shove his tongue down the older man's throat.

"So what was a few hours ago if that wasn't any form of physical, romantic contact?"

"Well you wouldn't face me so I had to turn your head."

"And your hand remained there?"

"To make sure you wouldn't turn away again...unlike what you did."

"What?"

"You kissed my hand." He raised his arm to rest his chin on the offending item

"Pfft yeah, harmless flirting." He turned his head away to hide the smirk on his face of victory, using the older man's words against him.

"No, that was Fraternization."

The brunette quickly looked back, eyes widened "Like hell it was!"

Roy smiled and shook his head, it had been too long since Ed's temper rose back to the surface. Some things never did change, just like the general knew he's win this 'argument', but how he did miss this, even if it did piss Ed off to no end.

"Since when have I ever kissed you apart from that one time."

"None, but I would sure like you to do that again." Ed stood and leant close to Roy's face "I want to see if all those rumours are true..." He leant in to whisper into his ear "..Every...single...one." He pulled back and looked into his eyes, they were so close. Ed slowly licked his bottom lip watching as the general's eyes followed the movement. Opening his mouth slightly he positioned himself millimetres from his superiors lips he could feel the short breaths leaving the others mouth.

What started off as a joke to wind the blonde up suddenly turned serious.

"Ed. We agreed." He gently pushed Ed back, sure they were all alone but he knew if they ever started it wouldn't stop. "And from now on we have to keep it to an absolute minimum."

Ed mentally cursed himself for taking the harmless flirting a bit too far. In a way he couldn't help it, his hormones were at full throttle, he wanted Roy in all sense of being. But the older man was right, they had both agreed, and yes they were about to embark on an important assignment. They had to be professional in every sense. He looked closely to the man of his desires, before he stood properly and turned. They were going to be working closely together for the time they are in Drachma, how long could the Fullmetal Alchemist last before his feelings for Roy over took his entire being?

Roy clicked open his basic, but very posh looking, pocket watch "It's time, we should get going."  
He rose to his feet and retrieved their cases and satchels, as much as he wanted to admit to the younger man that he almost caved in to kiss him he thought it was best not. He didn't want to give the darker haired man an excuse to start a relationship or ammunition to try it again in the future. No matter how much the general wanted their friendship to turn into something much longer lasting, greater...pleasurable. He had to follow order and rules to the book, but he did make a silent pledge that when he was Führer that rule would be abolished, so that him and Ed could finally be together like they wanted...needed to. Was his feelings for Ed beginning to cloud his judgement of the situation? Most likely. Rules are there for a reason, and for good reason at that.

xXx

Taking the train from central was an interesting experience. It had been a while since Ed had ridden in the economy section, he kind of missed it. But for Roy this was something he hadn't experienced in years. Ever since he was Colonel he had his own private carriage, quiet and peaceful not to mention the seats were actually padded and comfortable, refreshments whenever he pleased, enough room to take a nap. Well it was still quiet since they were riding the train in the very early hours of the morning, so Roy was rather happy he didn't have to put up with screaming children. They had to ride the train like normal citizens, as to not arouse suspicion and blow their cover before they even get there. Both left their state certified pocket watches behind as well as the Flame's ignition cloth gloves. If these items were found by someone in Drachma the amount of trouble and pressure they put on themselves and the entire country of Amestris would be tremendous. All the team had excellent hand to hand combat records so it wasn't an issue if they were in a tight spot.  
Disembarking at Posterim, just north of Liore, they take a car to the Amestrian border with the vast desert. As soon as they stepped out of the vehicle they received several strange looks from the Amestrian guards. Grabbing their cases and thick coats and shoes, for when they did make it to Drachma they walked to the checkpoint. Ed could feel several pairs of eyes following them with every step, part of him would have felt better if they did recognise who they were and saluted. Both men gave one of the guards their 'Junale' card. The man looked at it and back to the two men standing before him.

"Very well, guards stand down, let them through. Your transport is waiting on the other side." No formalities and no salutes were given as they carried on.

And so began the trek into the desert to the ruins of Xerxes on horseback. Reaching the ruins before the blazing sun hit its peak they took shelter, the exact same place Ed was reunited with the supposedly deceased Maria Ross, even the stones where they once sat remained untouched. Ed watched as Roy slouched on the heavily shaded stone, wiping the beads of sweat from his brow before unbuttoning half of his white shirt. Both men had shed the jackets some time ago as the trek became more tedious.

"Who's idea was it to wear these suits in the first place?" The older man gasped out as Ed gave him a canteen of water.

"That would be...you, because you thought that since we were pretending to be traders in Xing we should look the part of wealthy businessmen." Ed watched as Mustang gulped down the reasonably warm water that was concealed in the horse's saddle bags. Watching the Adam's apple bob up and down with every gulp before wiping the trails of perspiration from his own face and neck with a wet cloth.

Mustang took a big gasp of air as he pulled the bottle from his lips to pour the remaining contents into his cupped hand and splashing his face with the liquid in an attempt to cool down quicker.

Ed looked over Roy's changed features "Why didn't you do it?"

The general glanced up to look at Ed in confusion before looking to the canteen. Was he supposed to have done something else with the container? It was his canteen, his supply of water, was he supposed to have given him a show or something? Do a sexy dance as the droplets flowed down his ripped body? Hell no would he do that..Ed on the other hand...that would be a rewarding sight. He probably didn't dance sexy either...wait what was his question again?

"Is the heat getting to you? The alterations. Hair, eyes..you're an alchemist. You didn't need someone else do it so why did you?"

Yes, the heat was defiantly getting to him "I told you Investigations sent Vickers over, I had no need to refuse."

"But we didn't need her."

"Ed...do I look like a beautician? I'm a General, my trademark alchemy is flame by snapping my fingers. As much as my unit is loyal I very much doubt they would let me within five feet to alter their appearance."

He did have a valid point since they've all been on the receiving end of his rage at some point in their lives.

"Besides Ed, how could I change your appearance when in my eyes you are already perfect?"

Ed cringed "Will you stop with the cheesy pick up lines already!? Thought we agreed a few hours that the flirting would be kept to the minimum."

"We did, and I told you that I had no interest in Sarah anyway but that still hasn't stopped you being jealous."

"I am NOT jealous!"

"Then why bring up the whole appearance thing?"

"It was just a thought..."

Roy's right brow raised as well as a half smirk, clearly not believing him.

"I'M NOT JEALOUS!"

"I think you protest too much. Were you sad that she didn't press her chest against you?" He saw the daggers Ed was mentally throwing at him, but he couldn't resist "Oh sorry, were you expecting something else to be pressed up against you?" He raised his eyebrows suggestively, knowing that himself was pushing the boundaries of their agreement too far, but he couldn't help it, he was having too much fun.

"Bastard" Ed muttered under his breath, but easily audible to the man only a couple of metres away. Mustang silently laughed as Ed walked back to one of the horses, clearly indicating that the conversation was over. How he missed winding him up. Sure he can't use height references against him any more, but he jumped on any chance he got. It was clear as day Ed was jealous of his flirting with the female investigator, plus he loved those cheesy lines really. No matter how much he saw Fullmetal cringe there was always a small spark of happiness in his eyes.

The two men waited until the peak of the day had passed before continuing through to Drachma, reaching the border just as the sun began to set. Awaiting them were four guards in what was the Drachman military dress. A black button down jacket with the Drachma military badge emblazoned on the right breast pocket, black pants, heavy black boots and a beret placed precisely upon their head. It wasn't that bad, but the Amestrian uniform glowed with authority and respect, these just looked... depressing.  
The two state alchemists approached the blockade, handing the boarder patrol their identification papers. The three men carefully kept a close eye on them with their rifles clutched tightly in their hands whilst the other checked their paperwork.

"What were you doing in Xing?" Wow, this guy doesn't beat around the bush.

"I was setting up trade agreements for my business, there is much demand for Xingese items such as fabrics, cuisine, ingredients, paints...you name it."

"The address..that's in one of the quietest areas in central, how could you possibly trade in such a place?"

"Ah yes, but I'm currently in negotiations concerning a much larger plot in a prime area of central."

The guard looked to Ed " And your business with this man?"

"I was his translator. Thought it'd be best in case he said something that could land him in prison, and to make sure the goods were from a legitimate and reliable source."

"You're fluent? Not many people in Drachma can even speak it. The military are in need for Xingese speakers, you know."

"Really?" Time for Ed to sound interested.

"They are willing to pay handsomely too, give it a thought." He handed each of the Amestrians their documentation back

"Will do" Ed replied before they were on their way again.

When they were clear of the outpost Roy chuckled "Thinking of joining the Drachman Military?"

"I don't think I'd be able to cope being under the command of another bastard Colonel or higher rank, who has an allergy to paperwork, a god complex and flirts with any female that just happens to be passing by."

"I didn't flirt with every woman!" He heavily protested.

xXx

They stayed overnight in the remote village of Gradenaw before leaving in the early hours for the train to central Drachma. At first Roy believed the economy travel wasn't that bad until around the fourth stop on their journey when more and more people flooded on, eventually turning their carriage into a screaming, crying, noisy children's play area. Both men decided it was best to find a quieter carriage but every one they went through was just as crowded as before. They took to staying on the junction connecting two carriages, using the moment to change into their thicker coats, hats, gloves and boots as the air became more bitter and colder the closer they got to their destination.

"You did get your automail sorted didn't you?" It was one thing Roy forgot to ask even though it was a bit late by now to remind the younger man.

"Don't worry, Winry came from Rush Valley as soon as you said we'd be heading up there. I remember what it was like when I went to Briggs and I wasn't going to make that mistake again or you'll be carrying me the whole way." Not that he'd have minded..

With Roy's mind put at ease they quietly stood through the rest of the journey. The things they needed to talk about were not for this moment on a train full of Drachman citizens and most likely military as well. There were the odd times he'd occasionally look towards his subordinate, but Ed remained staring out the window watching the gradual transition from grass to snow as the time passed.

They arrived in central in the early evening without any problems. It was only a ten minute walk to the public house, which turned to half an hour due to the sudden blizzard that swept over. Walking through the doors Roy immediatly saw Vato at the bar along with Heymans. Havoc was to the other side chatting to some poor unsuspecting brunette. To the right was Riza and Kain in a booth. Both high-ranking officers immediatly swept into the empty booth beside them.

"Kestar, you want something to drink?" Roy referring to Ed by his undercover name as he slid his suitcase and satchel next to the temporary brunette, goodness knows how that name was one of the most popular in Drachma.

"The usual would do nicely." He nodded

With that Roy walked up to the bar, placing himself between Breda and Falman. "Tavek, Mus. Good to see you again, it's been a while."

Breda tapped him gently on the back "Hey James! When did you get back?"

"Just this moment, yourself?"

"Ah we got here about four hours ago." He began to whisper "The rest of the gang came home about two hours ago." Referring to Hawkeye and Fuery.

Roy nodded as he ordered a drink for him and Ed "How was your trip, you went south didn't you?"

"Yeah, had a bit of trouble, but nothing we couldn't handle."

"Were the civilians not accepting your hard work?"

"They were a bit...cautious shall we say, but they accepted it after some discussion and allowed us to continue with our building, I thought people knew what trains were in this day 'n' age."

It was expected that the three of them may come across trouble coming from the Amestris border, but Mustang had every hope in his men and it definitely prevailed. He turned around to see Ed talking to Riza, to everyone else it would just look like Ed was talking to himself and Hawkeye talking to Fuery.

Ed sat back in his seat staring at the table.

"You get here alright?"

"Yes, a bit of congestion on the train, but other than that no problems, how about yourself?"

Ed tapped his fingers on the wooden surface "Bitching desert heat, an invite to join the Drachman military and an over crowded train."

"An invite?"

"Apparently they are looking for fluent Xingese speakers, they were willing to pay handsomely for my services. No doubt trying to sweet talk Xing into lending them some of their power. I feel sorry for the poor soul who has to try and beg them to go against Amestris. I can just see May and Ling Yao toying with them." Why did that first part sound like he was going to be some Xingese escort?

Roy walked back over to Ed, placing the glass of scotch in front of him before taking a seat himself. Both men decided to keep a close watch on Havoc as he begun to get more and more friendly with the brunette, it was causing somewhat of a concern as he began to attract more and more attention from the other drinkers.  
More and more eyes were focused on his subordinate, it was clear he had a bit to drink but he was getting a head of himself. The general walked back to the bar tapping each man on the shoulder, silently giving the order for Breda and Falman to get him out of there and to their designated inn. Both men nodded and walked to their chatty comrade.

"C'mon Frank, I think you've had enough. We've had a long day s'time to go home." Breda wrapped an arm around the tipsy man's shoulder in an attempt to pull him away.

"What? Hey no I'm fine! The night is young, c'mon guys!"

It was at that moment a group of eight Drachman soldiers came in through the door and paused, scanning the entirety of the place before walking to the commotion. Ed nervously looked to his boss at the bar who looked at him back with the same amount of concern.

"Is there a problem here?" The leading soldier asked the group of three men and a woman.

"Nah it's fine, we were just leaving. Our friends has had a bit too mu-"

The soldiers eyes opened widely when he got a good look at the woman. "Ma'am!" He saluted her.

The fact that a soldier had just saluted to what seemed to be a normal civilian was bad...very bad. Ed watched as most of the other customers quickly retreated out of the public house and into the darkening streets. All the undercover Amestrians were now on high alert, they needed to get out now.

"Yes there was a problem, this man seems to think I am a prize to be won over by disgusting words." Her voice was racked with anger.

The soldiers suddenly pushed Breda and Falman out the way and grabbed Havoc, pushing him hard against the wall.

"Hey, what the hell!?" Jean cried out as his arms were twisted painfully behind his back.

"Hey, come on let him go, he's done nothing wrong, we were just leaving." Breda spoke calmly placing a hand on the soldier's shoulder calmly pulling him back. He refused to budge, instead another bigger, burlier soldier grabbed Heymans and gave him the same treatment that Havoc was receiving.

"Treating the daughter of the High Commander of Drachma with lack of respect is a punishable sentence. Interfering with the arrest will lead you to be punished just the same as him. "

This wasn't going at all well. Two Amestris military officers were about to get arrested in enemy territory. It would only be a matter of time before they were found out. Their fake documentation only consisted of name, date of birth and a false address. If they happened to go round to said addresses their cover would be blown and instead live day after day of torture and interrogation to get the real information out of them.

Roy and Ed looked at each other, action needed to be taken, but then there was a chance they'd get detained along with Jean and Heymans. But years of loyalty has built this team into one of the finest in Amestris, and if you pick on one, you pick on all. The blue-eyed blonde general gave the nod to the remaining squad to engage.


	8. Some women just aren't made for Roy

The scene escalated in a matter of seconds - polite talking and trying to calm the already tense situation failed. Before they knew it fists flew. Who threw the first punch? Roy didn't know, but it definitely wasn't one of his men. People were being pushed around like a stereotypical bar brawl. Blood spayed the wall as a fist connected with a face, glasses smashed as tables were knocked over complete with bodies as they were slung, not to mention the constant obscenities that turned the air blue. All this was started just to free Havoc and Breda from the enemy's hands, and it worked..just not the way intended.  
With most of the men flailing on the floor the seven Amestrians quickly fled, hastily grabbing their cases as they rushed out the door.  
Sprinting down the crowded street ducking, diving, leaping and spinning around the stalls, animals, trash and civilians, who were completely clueless as to what events had unfolded not but a few minutes before. The soldiers, who were fairly battered and bruised compared to Roy's men, repeatedly called out for the fleeing unit to stop, but of course they weren't going to do that. In an act of public service several civilians reached out or lunged towards the Central Amestrian soldiers. None were successful as these seven were well-trained and well prepared.  
As they got into a more open and public free area the shots began fire, for a simple misunderstanding and Havoc chatting up the wrong woman. The Flame couldn't believe how something like this would result in permission to use a firearm. Bullets missed their heads by mere inches, it was too close to comfort. They had to separate and hope for the best, them fleeing in a group was just like one massive moving target, it would only take one bullet to hit it's mark before more follow. Lucky for them these soldiers clearly didn't have proper firearms training what with how awful their aim was.  
Splitting up into their assigned groups and partnerships, Roy pushed Ed to the right into a side alley as the others continued to run away from the armed soldiers.  
The flame was already mentally cursing Havoc for already putting the mission...and their lives in jeopardy before they even began. There they were undercover, disguised, in a central Drachman bar planning their next move when he decides to start hitting on some woman at the bar, the one that had to be the commander of Drachma's daughter, sure he wasn't to know, but it was common sense not to flirt with someone from enemy territory. If a physical relationship followed he might be too infatuated and spill military secrets. Fraternizing with an enemy was much worse crime then if it was him and Edward. But still a simple apology would not have gone amiss, but of course Drachma was completely different to Amestris. They seemed to thrive on violence, even a civilian could look at the many failed assaults on Briggs and easily come to that conclusion. On the only bright side this will make Havoc think twice before hitting on the next woman he sees.

Roy and Ed leapt over a garden fence and found cover in a dense bush just beside the footpath. Watching closely through the small gaps of shrubbery as two guards approached huffing and panting. The clearly unfit soldiers turned to each other deciding on their next choice of path after losing sight of the two men, who were in reality only yards away. The two high-ranking Amestrians held their breaths as they watched the two men arguing, one looking down a path to the right and another to the left. It was just pure coincidence that the two generals had found one of the most perfect places to hide, to watch the scene going on in front of them. One soldier wanted to go one way as did the other, but they would not go on their own fearing they would be outnumbered. If they went through the right training the rifles would have greatly helped them and gave them a moderately better advantage. Minutes after much childish bickering they decided to return to the tavern, unknown to them that two pairs of eyes were following their every footstep until they were completely out of view.

"So what now?" The brunette whispered to his superior

"We head to our inn.." The General went to reach into his bag tapping his side until he looked down, realising nothing was there.

"Shit." Ed looked to him trying to work out what the problem was.

Of all the things for Mustang to lose would be the bag that contained the important stuff, falsified identification, citizenship papers and wallet. So all he had with him was a small suitcase of clothes. Come to think of it, did he even grab the bag when they ran? He remembered giving a mean right hook to one of the soldiers before their escape route was clear. Giving a signal to the others they quickly ran to the exit, Ed following close both quickly grabbed their cases but his mind couldn't remember if there was a beige strap also in his grasp. Great, it was either still at the public house or accidentally lost it during the getaway. He was glad in a way that Edward was the only one with him or there'd be much gloating from the other subordinates.

"Looks like we're in the same boat.." Roy looked to the younger man noticing his own satchel missing. Well it was now defiantly good that the lower ranks weren't here..

Neither of them had their state alchemist certified pocket watch, well if they had, and shown it here they would have been lynched and an incredible probability war would break out too. The whole plan for coming to Drachma was to find the perpetrators responsible for the destruction of central command, but now it was also a fight for survival. No identification, no money.

"Do you know where we were staying?"

Ed nodded, even without his alchemy he was still a smart man and remembered every detail of the mission brief. Slowly they backed out of the hedge and made their way to the inn the two of them were supposed to be spending however long is needed in the country. At least a second positive came around without them realising, they were in the correct district, so when they get to the inn third time's the charm...

xXx

Roy began to walk up to the reception desk, when his eyes locked on to the most grotesque woman he'd ever seen in his life. Her shoulder length hair was badly matted and so greasy you could probably wring it and fry an egg in it! Her nose was the biggest he'd ever seen and he swore he could see the hairs coming out from it, even though he was a good twenty feet away. And that make up..was she blind? Or did she think that the clown look 'was in'? Her cheek bones had way too much blusher, eye shadow a blue that just wouldn't suit ANYONE reaching up to her thick, bushy eyebrows. He quickly turned around placing his hand over his mouth.

"What's wrong?" Ed whispered, gently placing his hand on the General's shoulder in a form of comfort, believing something was amiss with the older man. He muffled something under his hand. Ed looked at him puzzled, unable to tell what he said. Roy grabbed him by the wrist and quickly walked out the door and around the corner.

"I've never seen someone so hideous in my life!" He inhaled deeply

"This isn't the time to be judgemental!" The brunette snapped back, so much for caring about the flame's well-being..

Roy took a deep breath and proceeded to walk to the desk.

"Can I help you sir?" She bellowed in a northern Drachman accent. Keeping her eyes down at the newspaper she was reading before licking her finger and slowly turning the page.

Roy paused after seeing the state of her teeth, all unaligned and yellow, some even missing. He held his breath knowing that hers would be atrocious.

"Hello, I have a reservation. Two single rooms under the name of James Sturtet.."

She sighed and opened the thick book in front of her, slowly turning the pages without a care "Identification.."

Was that a question or demand?

"Ah no, you see I lost it on the way back from Xing..."

She looked at him. He could feel the bile coming up his throat, she was better looking when her head was turned away.

"Fine, then I'll have to charge you extra..unless you just happened to lose your wallet as well.." She turned to see Roy smile nervously. "I'm not a charity pretty boy, no money no room, regardless of reservation or not, get out of here."

Without hesitation he quickly turned and rushed over to Ed "Right, never mind time to go..." Usually he would have kicked up a fuss but he didn't even want to be in the same building as her. There may have been some airborne parasite that turned people into that because not even an Amestrian woman was as terrifying as that. To be honest the worst woman he had seen back home was like a beauty queen compared to this one.

"Flirt with her or something, we need shelter, the nights round here are harsh!"

"Me...flirt with...her." Just even thinking about it made his skin crawl and that bile wanting to escape as he pointed back to the inn.

"Yes Roy..flirt with her, take her on a date..sleep with her I don't care. We need a room" Well he did care about the sleeping part, but he had to act as he would normally do in these situations.

"Well why don't you do it?"

"Because I don't have the reputation that you do back home, you're the man every woman swoons towards."

Not to mention he caught the attention and affections of a certain blonde man...

"I am not sleeping with her..I have standards Ed, boxes to tick! She does not tick anything I find attractive about a woman."

Ed made a mental note to ask about these 'boxes to tick' for another time.

"Put a bag over her head and think she's someone else then!"

Roy wondered if Ed properly knew what he was saying. Surely he should know who'd be the 'someone else'? Besides that woman's body, no matter how hard he tried, would EVER be Ed's.  
The Major General pushed his superior back towards the desk and glared with his arms crossed. The Flame Alchemist regained some composure before leaning on the front desk.

"I wonder...if I could pay you in...other terms." He lifted his eyes slowly and seductively from the desk to look straight at hers. He was imagining looking into stunning golden orbs. Soft, golden hair and sun-kissed skin. Everything about his image was perfection. The man he desired was standing behind the counter. He gave his most striking smirk he placed the hand in his as his other gently glided along the face. That's where his fantasy faded. The instant his hand touched that face, the illusion dispersed. The lumps and bumps of what must have been spots and warts just made him cringe before he quickly turned and ran.

Ed ran after him, grabbing his superiors coat before pushing him against the wall.

"What the hell is wrong with you!?"

"I am not stooping so low to sleep with a woman so hideous...so...unclean just so you can sleep on a mattress. I need to wash my hands, I need to sanitize my hands maybe even scour my hands, burn my hands..pour acid. If you don't like it Ed you go sleep with her.."

xXx

They began to walk back down the side streets looking for some place to shelter from the ever-increasing coldness that loomed in the air, walking for what seemed like hours. They didn't know where they were...well apart from Central Drachma, but lost in an enemy country. The report for this mission was ever-increasing to be one big massive joke. Getting scouted for a military position, attempted chat up of commander's daughter, bar fight, running away, hiding, lost satchels and flirting with vile clowns. Roy's mind was drifting off hoping the other members of his squad are safe and alright, for security and safety reasons none of the groups disclosed where they were staying in the case they did get interrogated. They were to meet up in a week from now in a specified and public area.

Mustang was turning a corner when Ed grabbed, and pulled him back around, pushing him against the wall for the second time in a matter of hours, pressing his hand hard against his superior's chest as he stood beside him. This whole pushing-him-against-a-wall thing must be some sort of fantasy for the younger officer, the General made a note for future reference.

"Ed, what-"

"Soldiers."

Roy looked down to the hand that was placed on him, the sudden warmth that emulated from that area was incredible and that still remained even as Ed peered around the corner before quickly turning back. Using his free hand Ed pressed a finger on his lips before Roy could even question him as the sound of footsteps grew louder. Ed's hand slowly glided to the Flame's side, pulling Mustang closer to him as the soldier came into view, his back turned to the two men as he searched the area. They had nowhere to hide, just with their backs against the wall in the evening light.  
What happened next was a blur to the General as the soldier turned round to their direction and carefully looked at the two men, just visible from the street light. He suddenly realised they were the people from the public house, but before he could call out to his comrades Ed had pushed himself off Roy, grabbing the man around his neck and pulling him off the road. Roy knew Ed was fast but he hadn't seen him in action for months since he returned Al to his own body. In a matter of seconds the soldier was out cold and Ed returned to his superior, dusting his clothing off.

"Come on, we best move before they come looking for him."

Roy had to be snapped out of his amazement by Ed pulling him by the collar of his coat, taking cover multiple times as the soldiers search for the two in force. No way would they be able to take them all on and with Roy unable to use flame alchemy, unless he wants to be discovered they had to remain silent. During one hiding moment Roy looked around their area whilst Ed kept a close eye on the soldiers running back and forth. Behind them, hidden in the corner, was a manhole cover. Roy placed a hand on the brunette's shoulder, pointing to the direction of their best getaway. Being in the sewers wasn't ever the first thing they would think of going to, but being underground was the best place to hide. As Ed remained lookout Roy crouched beside the small handle sticking up and began to pull. The metal groaned as it rose on its hinges with the temporary blonde stopping now and again to make sure their cover wasn't blown. Ed scaled the ladder down first swiftly followed by his superior who carefully shut the opening up once more.  
The ladder was surprisingly shorter than expected and Roy's feet touched concrete in a matter of seconds. It was getting much darker as they moved further in away from the cover to the surface. Finding a small dead-end corridor a small distance from the entrance they collected what ever dried materials had made their way in from the surface and piled them into the middle of said corridor. It was clear enough to them that they weren't in the Drachma sewers but seemingly an underground tunnel...and a rather suspiciously large one at that. The time had come to light them a fire to give them whatever extra warmth they could as their exhaled breath was just visible even in the minimal light. One problem..Roy needed something with a spark

"I thought this would come in handy.."

He felt something being waved in front of his face by the natural blonde beside him.  
Taking it he realised it was a lighter, why didn't he think of that? The Flame Alchemist without a lighter as back up? He really did depend on his ignition gloves too much. The material they gathered burned easily, but slowly. Both had collected more than enough to make a small fire with the minimum amount of smoke.

Ed took the empty space opposite of Roy across the fire warming up their freezing fingers and faces in the relaxing heat expelling from the flames. As much as he wanted a comfortable and warm bed the fact that he was at least with Roy made it bearable as he laid down on the cold concrete. Using some of the spare clothing in his case as a makeshift pillow he began to drift off, the last sight before his eyes closed was of Roy gently smiling at him, not a smirk, but a warming smile, a loving smile.


	9. To survive

Sleep came in short bursts for Roy, waking up for the umpteenth time to make sure the fire was still burning well in the harsh cold. With daylight coming through the small grates that lined the route further down the tunnel he slowly sat up, wincing as sleeping on the hard floor sent small stabs of pain throughout his body. He stretched and turned every limb to remove the stiffness coating his entire being. How he wished he had one of the others addresses. Raising his knee to rest his left arm as he leaned against the concrete wall he looked into the dancing flames.  
Even if he had an address there would still be the problem that there would just be a single bed. One person would still be on the floor unless they share? No that was out of the question. He couldn't share with Ed. There was no telling what would happen, tension was already strong between the two of them and being in such close proximity would cause all previous talks to be meaningless. Even Roy couldn't guarantee that he'll keep his hands to himself.  
What about he shared with someone else? Riza was out of the question since Ed knew their history. Fuery was alright, but then Ed would be sharing with Riza..two love interests sharing a room, that would be awkward for them both. Now with the other three he could kick Havoc out into the cold as part payment for him getting them in this mess - there was one bed, and he'll order Breda will put his ego aside and share with Falman.  
The sound of Ed stirring snapped him out of his plan to look over at the man sleeping on the opposite side, his face so calm and relaxed Roy couldn't help but smile. He just sat there watching the younger man's chest slowly rise and fall, occasionally looking away to add more materials to the fire.

"You know bastard, it's rude to stare." Ed muttered as he slowly opened one eye to look back at his superior

"I've got nothing better to do at this moment in time." replying with a soft smirk. Maybe they could still share? After all they did last night and nothing happened between them. It was just the case of who'd get the bed. But was that a risk he was willing to take?

"What time is it?" He muttered once more, not taking any notice of his superior's remark.

Roy took out his basic pocket watch and clicked the casing open

"Twelve noon"

The temporary brunette quickly rose to his knees "Why didn't you wake me instead of watching me like some creepy stalker!?"

"Because we have no leads to go on at the moment."

"Hang on, we are in Drachma undercover, without decent shelter and you're saying we have no leads!?"

"We are to meet the Intel five days from now, just us two. He'll tell us where to go and any information relevant to the assignment. We use these five days to get used to our surroundings, make a mental map so to speak. The following day after receiving our Intel we meet with the others and make a plan of action."

Both decided it was best to change their clothes as no doubt their attire from yesterday was lodged in the soldiers minds as they ran. Roy went from smartly dressed to casual and loose-fitting clothes whilst Ed stayed smart, swapping his white shirt for a darker tone as well as his pants, keeping his hair in a loose ponytail as Roy covered his with a woolly hat.

The older man watched as Ed placed the sunglasses back on. "Won't you be drawing attention to yourself wearing those? I thought they were only for the desert."

Ed smiled "Snow is white, mixed with sunshine it's blinding white, sunglasses are to stop my eyes from aching and me getting a migraine."

"Really?"

"Well that's the excuse, I just think I look good in these."

Before Roy could comment both their stomachs rumbled in unison, they hadn't eaten anything since they arrived in Drachma, but there was only a slight issue that they didn't have any money since it was in the lost satchels with their identification.

Ed read the look on Roy's face and flashed his trademark wide grin "Don't worry, I have money"

"No you don't" And he knew that for certain.

Ed nodded in response, Roy's eyes narrowed and shook his head

"Let me see then"

"When have I ever lied to you?" His question was received with silence "...okay don't answer that. But trust me here Roy."

"Does it involve breaking the law Edward?"

Ed took a moment to think before he replied.

"...No"

xXx

Roy sat at a table inside a small restaurant watching Ed work his magic on the waitress. The ex alchemist was originally going to find a place, eat and then run like hell. Of course the General was having none of it, he lived to make sure the streets were safe for the people of Amestris. He wasn't going to flout the law of his homeland in another country for a bit of food, enemy or not. Fullmetal had clearly studied the older man's seduction technique. The little smirk to the small and delicate hand gestures as he chat up the nearest good-looking female and turning them to putty in his hands. Mustang did admit to himself that the waitress Ed was chatting up wasn't that bad-looking, definitely not his type, but acceptable, but he couldn't help the slight jealousy that began to build. Is this the feeling Ed felt when he had to watch him pointlessly flirt with Sarah? Maybe this would have been quicker if the Flame himself done it, but Ed was adamant that he should. Maybe it was for the best as he remembered how jealous Ed got the last time he flirted with a woman, goodness knows what would happen if he had to ever flirt with another man.

His eyes followed Ed back to the table, if his smiling face was anything to go by it was a positive result.

"Well?"

"Covered, we can eat as much as we want." He stretched his arms above his head in a form of accomplishment

"And what do you have to sacrifice in order for this to happen?"

"Seriously James, nothing! She felt sorry for us. I told her we got robbed on the way back from Xing." Ed made sure to use Roy's undercover name when out in public.

Something didn't feel right to the flame, but his stomach refused to let him find the answer as two plates of steak were placed in front of their noses with bowls of potatoes and vegetables swiftly following. They inhaled greatly at the mouth-watering aroma that seeped up their nostrils before tucking straight in, allowing the rich flavours to ravish their taste buds.

"Was everything to your liking gentlemen?" The waiter smiled as he removed the dirty plates from the table onto a small trolley.

"Yes, very much, thank you." Roy couldn't remember the last time he was filled to the brim

The waiter then placed a small steel dish onto the table "I'll be back in a couple of minutes."

He turned making his way back to the kitchen as Roy looked suspiciously at the piece of paper turned upside down, weighted down by a couple of after mints. Ed's eyebrows furrowed as he shifted the sweets out the way, picking up the paper and examining it. Roy looked over his shoulder to see it was a bill for the food, and an eye watering amount at that.

Ed jumped slightly when he heard Mustang clear his throat beside him "Look it's just some misunderstanding, I'll sort it."

The temporary brunette looked around for the waiter who served them. Leaving his seat he quickly walked up to him "Excuse me?"

"You ready to pay sir?" He looked up before his attention was back on the crockery he was placing in neat piles.

"Ah, yes well I was told it would be taken care of." The waiter suddenly stopped and looked at him with a furrowed brow confusion

"By who sir?"

"The waitress, Samantha, short dark hair, dark eyes.." He looked around to try and point her out.

"We don't have waitresses here sir, I'm sure you are mistaken with the restaurant across the way."

Well that was a mental punch to the gut. So he and Roy had eaten at the wrong place and have now been footed with a rather extortionate bill. She never said she didn't work here. Their uniforms are very much a like, how could he know?

"Is there a... problem sir?" He started to become suspicious with Ed's silence.

"No, no, it's fine.." Putting on his best smile "..we can pay for it. It's just a little misunderstanding."

Roy raised an eyebrow as Ed returned. He younger man smiled, but his body language was saying something different. The stiffness in his shoulders, the slower walk back, the way he couldn't even look at him, instead keeping his eyes locked to the floor.

"We are going to have to run, aren't we?" He muttered to the younger man, who only nodded, grabbing his coat and took off with his superior in tow. The waiter in question saw them and began the chase.

They stopped at a dead-end. They had lost their pursuer rather easily but they made sure they were completely out of sight and sound before resting. Roy was bent over, hands on his knees inhaling deeply to regain a steadier rhythm, looking at Ed in a mildly pissed of demeanour.

"I'm sorry okay! It was a misunderstanding! She never said she worked at another place." The older man leant against the brick wall behind him, still with the same expression and shook his head.

"I can't believe I even agreed to let you do it."

"Hey at least one of us did something instead of starving! You're full aren't you!?"

"I was..now I've just got indigestion."

"Well you're full of hot air already so a bit more wouldn't matter.."

Ed huffed and sat down on a small wooden crate as a flurry of snowflakes began to fall. Yes he messed up but they had no money, how else were they supposed to eat? They didn't know where the rest of the unit were staying and they had to keep their energy up, especially in these harsh weather conditions. This was what it was going to be until they made contact with the others, they had to steal no matter how much the General was against it. Yes, its risky business especially if they get caught and arrested but what else were they supposed to do? Search in the trash? That'll be a sight for any Amestrian, The Flame and Fullmetal Alchemist scrounging through the trash, how the mighty fall..

Roy looked over to him once more remembering times like these when they argued. He'd always win no matter what the subject, but he couldn't win this one. When he looked at him he didn't see the brunette with teal eyes, he saw the blonde, golden eyed man that he cared so greatly for. The younger ex alchemist was only looking out for him whether it was for the good of the mission, because he was higher ranking or just because he cared, which was most likely the reason. It was a trait of Ed's that was one of his strongest and most admirable features that he'd put anyone else first before his own.  
He pushed himself off the wall and crouched in front of the silent subordinate. Ed refused to look at him, even when his sunglasses were gently removed from his face. Roy folded the arms and gently placed the tinted spectacles into Ed's own coat pocket. The temporary brunette's features weren't of someone pissed off and stropping, like he'd have been back in the old days, but of a man deep in thought.

"Ed" He received no reaction

"Ed..look at me." The teal eyes moved slightly, but didn't look straight at him, instead the seemed more focused on the General's footwear then anything else.

Mustang raised his right hand and gently placed his thumb and forefinger on the soft tanned skin, ushering the younger man to properly look at him. Blue met teal, instead of onyx meeting amber.

"Just forget it, it was a stupid idea anyway.." He raised his arm to swat away the other's hand, but it was replaced almost immediately.

"Ed, I may be an ass hole sometimes but if I was in your shoes I would have done the same thing."

Ed looked at his features, which were clearly showing the sincerity in his words. He knows that Roy would have done it... eventually, but it's always that law-abiding ego that got in the way. He looked back into the azure eyes when he removed the hand from his chin, but those eyes looked to something else. The hand raised again to push one of Ed's shorter bangs back behind his ear. It was slow and gentle, as the general's fingers slowly graced the skin from the top all the way round to the lobe. Even though the movement was slow and calm Ed's heart was beating a mile a minute. It was the first time Roy had ever done anything like this. Sure to the older man it might just be a normal thing, but to him it was something that had deep meaning.

Mustang stood back to his feet "Would you care to accompany me in some sightseeing?" He held out his hand to assist the younger man to his own feet.

Ed looked up and smiled, taking the hand as he was pulled up to only inches away from the man of his desires. The hand left his way too soon for his liking as he watched Roy's back progress further and further away before the man noticed he wasn't being followed. He stopped and waited with a heart warming smile.  
To Ed rules were made to be broken, but to Mustang they were everything. But maybe...just maybe the one rule that had put a wall between the two, the wall that stopped him being close to his superior, was beginning to crumble..


	10. Unexpected sighting

They were to meet up with their contact in two days, the unit in three. The only place left for them to explore and memorize was the trade district, a maze of stalls and shops in the heart of central Drachma. They decided to leave this area until last since it was the biggest and most crowded place in probably the whole of Drachma. Casually walking around the streets, finding the best places to run and hide, not very elegant of the two highest ranking officers in the Amestrian military but it was necessary what with all their eat and runs. They walked through the busy crowds of a chilly afternoon taking mental notes of high profile shops, historic buildings, streets, turns and alley ways. They even stopped to examine the produce, Aerugonian, Cretish, but unsurprisingly, nothing Amestrian. All trade routes were immediately shut down when Drachma first attacked the northern border. If anything was even remotely Amestrian it would have been smuggled in and even then kept hidden away from law-abiding eyes on the black market. They did spot Xingese, but was clearly a fake on closer inspection. Well at least their fabricated story would have technically made more sense, especially by how much a fake item is worth. There were times the two men would spot a small group of soldiers doing their rounds. Luckily the two men were wearing hats so their identity wouldn't be as obvious, but they still hid their face, turning their backs to the unsuspecting patrol men as they walked past. Even if they weren't the guards that had chased them from the first day they arrived they weren't going to take any chances.

The two Amestrians took a break, standing under an arch to the side, watching as the crowds walked past when someone caught Roy's attention. He stretched his neck to try and get a better view, almost walking back into the crowds when Ed grabbed his arm.

"What is it?"

"I think I've just seen someone.." His eyes darted through the sea of people to find the face once more.

"Really? Well I have too, it's something called a bustling market. Seriously James you need to be a bit more specific."

Roy ignored the younger man's sarcasm.

"Is it one of our unit?" Ed tried to get something out of him.

"No.." Before he could say any more his eyes locked onto said person. He pointing to someone in the crowd

"That's one of our missing Intelligence officers."

Ed's eyes and head darted from side to side in attempt to spot one of the missing Amestris soldiers until Mustang's fingertips grasped lightly around his chin, turning him in the correct direction.

"The one in the dark green shirt, black pants." Ed's eyes caught on and began following.

"I don't recognise him. He's not one from the list."

"You shouldn't, he's been missing for three years. I guess it's good to see that he's alive."

"What do you want to do?" Ed's teal orbs locked onto Roy, who hadn't taken his sights off the man. "We don't know if he's one of the rogue officers."

"We can't lose him. We need to talk to him, but he may of broken contact because he was close to being found out. We trail him from a safe distance, see what he does and try to speak to him on his own."

Mustang took the lead with Ed close beside him. Their assignment was to capture two known live traitors and investigate the two suspected dead ones. But Roy wasn't going to let this opportunity slip. Amestris needed 'all hands on deck' against the dangers filling into Amestris from Drachma. There was a very good reason why the country itself had over forty undercover officers in Drachma alone working to keep Amestris safe. Three suspected rouge soldiers and a citizen was a problem, they didn't need any more. They followed the man through the side streets before he turned, proceeding into the poorer district. The two Amestrians were relieved in a way that after days of nothing but law breaking just to survive they were finally able to follow up on a lead, even if it wasn't part of their original assignment. The clothes they were wearing that day were tatty enough that they didn't stick out, but instead blended in perfectly.  
The man suddenly started running, did he spot them? No, they were still unnoticed. Ed and Roy immediately took off after him, the younger of the two men sprinting into the lead to catch up. He had gone beyond caring if they got seen now, it's not like anyone would recognise them, only the very squad he was part of would have an idea. Snaking through the alleys and warehouses Ed lunged and caught the man, both falling onto the floor before a short scuffle breaks out, forcing Ed to drag him down a dead end into a small abandoned hut. The metal roofing and panels were all heavily rusted as corrosion took it's heavy hold. Holes in the roof let whatever dim light shine to the ground in beams. Sheltered in the shadows he slammed the man hard into the wall, his ex automail arm pressed fiercely against the man's throat, leaving him just enough room to breathe with a small beam of light penetrating the darkness, focusing on the petrified man's face. Pale skin, short chestnut hair, hazel eyes. He didn't look that much older than Roy.

"Calm down! We just want to talk!" Ed tried to calm the man's need to escape.

"I told yer, I got nothin'!" He tried to push Ed away with no avail as he continued to struggle.

"Relax Derek."

Fullmetal noticed the panic in the man's eyes as soon as the name, which clearly was his real identity, was called out by the man behind him.

"Y-you got the wrong guy! I'm Harrison! Harrison Byfield!" He shrieked as his attempt to get free of Ed's grasp was easily nullified, but now he was incredibly desperate to get away.

"First Lieutenant Derek Hachmar, Central Intelligence Officer under the guidance of Colonel Grett Reid, at ease we are not your enemy."

Ed kept a close eye on the man's features, noticing not only the panic, but now fear, the fear of being discovered who he really was.

"You got the wrong guy!"

Ed turned his head towards the General as he walked through the threshold into a beam of light to let himself be known, taking off his hat, not that he was that easily recognisable with that blonde hair.. The younger man had to admit that his superior looked menacing, like one of the Amestris interrogators as he stepped into the light. Someone you don't want to mess with - mind you that was the Flame Alchemist through and through, you got on his bad side you pay the consequences, yet he was the most kindest and loyal man when you got to know him, always looking out for his unit. Ed lost count the amount of times he assisted the then Fullmetal Alchemist through his search for the Philosopher's stone and even up to the moment now their team work had become the strongest combination in Amestris.  
Ed turned back to Derek, clearly still unable to recognise the man one rank under Führer, even though the General had now ruffled his hair back to the style it originally was. He searched the man's pockets, something he should have done in the first place. Wallet, pencil, cigarettes, paper, flip knife and.. Ed smirked holding the thin case between his finger and thumb before throwing it to Roy.  
The General caught it with ease as the light glistened off the metal box, flipping the top of the casing open and quickly slid his thumb over the wheel causing a flame to burst from the sparks.

Holding the lighter out at arm's length "Do I really need to do any more?"

Derek's eyes widened, now with shock "Mustang?"

Another thought crossed Ed's mind Why didn't he tell him his name in the first place? Then he suddenly remembered Roy likes to make a show of himself, once again he wants to inflate his already massive ego.

"Sorry for the intrusion First Lieutenant" Snapping the lighter shut.

"What are you doing here?"

"Intelligence, just like you were until we lost contact over three years ago...Edward" Roy quickly swiped his left hand telling Ed to let him go and back away.

The older Elric took his place next to his commanding officer taking his time to look through the belongings he confiscated.

"Edward.. Elric?...I thought you left the military.."

Ed didn't even raise his head as he began to search through the wallet "Change of plans. My presence was required a little longer." Not that the man didn't need to know the real reason why he stayed. That was only his and Roy's business.

"You going to tell me the story Derek?" The superior officer folded his arms.

"I infiltrated the group I was assigned to investigate, I had been sending messages back to central for a couple of months when I noticed that they sent someone to follow me and they've been doing it ever since.."

Throughout that not so very detailed statement Roy noticed that he never took his eyes off Ed or, more importantly, what he was doing. Something in that wallet was making him nervous.  
The temporary brunette pulled out a substantial amount of paper money, it was straight away something to be suspicious of, before taking a good look at the fake identification from when his mission was assigned. It was then his index finger of his right hand glided across a small bump just on the inside crease. On a leather wallet that was odd, especially when the stitching was a lot more rougher then what it should have been. Taking out the flip knife he carefully cut into the fabric from one end to another revealing another compartment containing some very small photographs. Roy made the mistake of quickly glancing down at his subordinate just as Derek smirked.  
Ed's arm suddenly raised over his General's head, blocking a rather feeble attempt at someone trying striking him with a wooden bat.

His teal orbs looked into Mustangs "Seriously Roy? I can't believe you didn't even attempt to block that.."

Roy smirked with both men still keeping eye contact as Ed kicked their attacker in the stomach sending him back out through the door frame where he once came.

"Having a bodyguard does have it's perks." Mustang finally replied before looking back just in time to see Derek breaking through a panel to the side, making his escape.

Ed quickly bolted out the door, striking down the previous attacker once more, Mustang only a few feet behind as they chased their target through the busy crowds. Men, women and even children were pushed out the way as the man desperately tried to get away.  
Leaping over obstacles Ed was closing in on the target and lept to tackle him once again when he suddenly turned at the last moment leaving Fullmetal to crash in to two people, who were going about their everyday lives. A couple who were busy admiring the little knick knacks and trinkets on one of the market stalls where now in a heap with Ed on top. Before he could get to his own feet Roy grabbed his coat and pulled the younger man from the pile of bodies and back to his feet to resume chasing. The Flame called out an apology to the two others still dazed on the floor before the male called out for them to stop, no doubt to either give Ed a verbal bashing or start a fight of his own, to protect his dignity and the revenge for his lady. But the two Amestrians weren't going to stop for anybody and began to close the gap to the fleeing man. Their knowledge soon prevailed as they knew he was leading himself to a dead-end. Turning the corner once again the two men noticed Derek had stopped running and instead was looking at them with a large smirk plastered all over his face.

"You going to tell us what the real story is Derek?" Roy bellowed before he was grabbed from behind and pushed hard into the stone wall just to the side of him, his face connected hard with the brick work. He could feel the skin ripping followed by a sharp stinging sensation on his left cheek as the grit entered the wound. His eyes made contact with Ed's who received the exact same treatment, both men pinned by force. A hand on each of their heads, another keeping their arms tight behind their backs, whilst full body weight was used to properly keep them in place, only inches apart in a way that they wouldn't be able to see who else was involved.

"Well well well.." Derek's voice came out exhausted. The two Amestris soldiers' eyes were still connected hoping the other would think of a good plan to escape.

"If I hand you two to the Drachman army I will be paid handsomely. General Roy Mustang, the Flame Alchemist and Edward Elric, the Fullmetal Alchemist. Two high-ranking Amestrian soldiers, deep in Drachma territory on intelligence gathering. Enough to start an all out war between the two countries."

"Why have you betrayed Amestris?" Ed called out, Roy could easily see the anger in his eyes.

"Betrayed? Fullmetal I'm doing Amestris a favour. Such a country that is run by power-hungry men that it's destroying a once beautiful country! Amestris is dying and I'm helping to put it right!"

Roy sighed "Says the man who joined the 'power hungry' cause. Correct me wrong First Lieutenant, but if I recall correctly you've been under the guidance of Colonel Reid for a large number of years, helping us defend the borders from the Drachman army. The very country you are attempting to assist now."

"That's true, but my intentions was to gather enough information on the Amestris military."

"And that took you what? Ten years? Forgive me for not being sympathetic. But at your rank you wouldn't have exactly got a great deal of confidential information, on fact you probably got none."

Derek gritted his teeth "I don't need you alive to claim my reward Mustang, you'll be just as good dead." The pressure placed on Roy's head increased greatly.

"As would you for your treachery." A female voice bellowed from street they once came. Roy and Ed didn't even need to see who it was that was coming to their aid, instead they just smirked at each other.

The two men holding Roy and Ed let their grip loosen for a mere second, but it was enough for the Amestrians to push back and break free from their grasp. Ed immediately headed straight to Derek as Roy, Riza and Kain tried to detain the two assailants. The traitor began to run, but didn't get far with his path blocked by the river that ran through town. He wasn't going to go down without a fight as the two men began throwing punches and kicks, Ed taking the upper hand.

Derek's movements were beginning to slow. The traitor knew it was only a matter of time before he is at the mercy of the highly respected military officers. One of his cronies had been detained. The female and the smaller male were taking care of the other. General Roy Mustang was headed his way, he knew his time had run out. He'd rather die then be interrogated by the enemy, but he wasn't going to go quietly. His face my be bruised and bloody and his body tiring, but he mustered enough strength to grab Edwards coat and pulled him, along with himself, into the raging waters below...


	11. The mind wanders

_Derek's movements were beginning to slow. The traitor knew it was only a matter of time before he is at the mercy of the highly respected military officers. One of his cronies had been detained. The female and the smaller male were taking care of the other. General Roy Mustang was headed his way, he knew his time had run out. He'd rather die then be interrogated by the enemy, but he wasn't going to go quietly. His face my be bruised and bloody and his body tiring, but he mustered enough strength to grab Edwards coat and pulled him, along with himself, into the raging waters below..._

Roy was halfway to reaching the fighting men when Derek grabbed hold of Ed. Time seemed to go in slow motion as he watched them slowly plummet over the edge, and out of sight. His eyes widened as he cried out, unheard by him, but heard by his subordinates. He rushed over to the edge where the men fell in, scanning through the rough waters for some miraculous hope that they stayed where they fell, but to no avail.

"Sir, we can take it from here, go find him!" As per usual Riza was giving him commands. When was it logical that a Major gives a General orders? But this was one order he wasn't going to refuse, immediatly taking off, running as fast as he can by the river's edge for even a glimpse of the mahogany hair belonging to the Fullmetal Alchemist.

xXx

The struggle continued as they began to hurriedly flow down the river, blow for blow. Ed's head had been dragged underwater for the second time, it was either Derek's desperation to get free or to take the younger man out. Fullmetal flailed before his hands grabbed onto the traitor's wrists, applying enough pressure to free himself from the grasp. Gasping for air as he returned to the surface another blow landed on his face, before he blocked the continuous assaults of the other man. It was beginning to get harder and harder to throw punches, both men were tiring rapidly in the treacherous conditions. The natural blonde grabbed Derek as the current swirled and turned the older man round. As much as they needed this man alive for severe interrogation if they continued like this then both of them would be dead.

Ed reached out to try and grab one of the ladders that quickly passed, but Derek was having none of it, he didn't want to be interrogated, he would rather die then be back in the hands of the Amestrian Military. He made his choice long ago to turn his back on his homeland, but even if he died he'd be famous for the one who killed Edward Elric, The Fullmetal Alchemist. Having such a famous death would draw attention, more people will join their cause. It was all he thought about when he push Ed back deeper into the water.

The flow of the river changed direction for all of two seconds, but it was enough to free Ed from his clutches once more. He was now on the front foot. Derek had been spun round, both men now flowing down river backwards. They were running out of time and this scuffle needed to end now, no matter how much they needed to properly interrogate Derek on his actions over the past three years, yet alone the ten years he was in the military, it was either him or Ed..or even both of them. Seeing his chance when the man was still turned away he lunged at him, grasping his head in his hands. Fingers clawed at his own in a desperation, but Ed hung on and turned the other's head sharply. The water was too loud for him to hear, but the way the body in front of him immediatly slumped meant he was successful. Quickly pushing the corpse away from him he could now focus on getting out.

He was soaked to the core, the weight of his clothing felt like he was carrying an extra two people, attempting to drag him down into the river's depths as the current took him. His head went under numerous times he needed to get out, now. Mustering all his remaining strength he swam to a ladder, grabbing it with both hands. He was shivering, trying to pull himself up, his muscles and hands were seizing, he couldn't grip. With no other option, he wrapped his arms around the vertical bar - his only lifeline. Roy was going to give him the third degree about keeping his guard up when he got out...if he got out. Like his younger self he began to get cocky as every strike hit its target, the man was bloody and disorientated, one lapse in judgement and now he was fighting for survival.  
The raging torrent of freezing water continued to punish him. His body began to turn numb, his breathing more erratic, he could feel his heart beating rapidly in his chest. His body was doing everything it could to keep him warm as the effects of hypothermia began to ravish him after such a short amount of time. Maybe this was his end? Maybe this was his time? Sure everyone had regrets, he didn't have many. He returned his brother to his original body and finally confessed his feelings to Roy. His life was complete apart from the actual physical relationship he desired with his General. Okay so that maybe was a regret that he didn't stick around long enough to feel those lips on his once again. His mind couldn't focus on reality, not even realising that two more bodies floated past him. All that flooded his mind was that one and only time Roy kissed him, the electrifying warmth he received from that physical contact. Maybe this was his brain keeping him warm in other ways, not exactly logical but it relaxed him, ready for the inevitability that body and soul were preparing to depart. He could hold on to that one happy memory for eternity as his head fell.

xXx

"Kestar!" Roy called out as he scanned the river for any signs of his comrade.

His adrenaline was pumping hard as he raced against time to find the Elric. He'd already been in the water for far too long, today was already minus temperatures so goodness knows how cold the water truly was. They were wearing their thickest coats, which to be honest weren't as thick as Roy would of liked, and a good three layers of clothing. The weight Ed would be carrying now as his clothes would become waterlogged would be tremendous.  
He brushed aside all the scenarios his brain was coming up with, the sight of a floating body, blue faced, murdered, glassed eyes blankly staring at him. He couldn't let Ed go now, the very thought of losing him was pushing the General harder and harder to find him. Yes rules were keeping them apart, but Ed was going to wait for him, he wanted to stay around him, even if the physical aspects weren't possible. It was what they held on to.

He didn't know how far he had ran, his legs just wouldn't stop. He looked over into the freezing torrent again for any signs of his subordinate, scanning anything usual as the water flowed past. He saw the bodies of two men float by. Big build, same clothing, these were the two men that had previously restrained himself and Ed. What happened with Hawkeye and Fuery? Were they alright? If any more bodies had come past he would have seen them by now. But all line of thought stopped when something caught his attention in the distance, something stuck to the side on a ladder. The closer he got the more it looked like a person, the more it looked like him.

Edward Elric

Roy had never ran so fast in his life.

An unconscious Ed was going to be retaken by the current. An arm barely holding on to the upright, as the rest of his body was being dragged under, and it was slipping by the second. Mustang quickly descended the ladder, and just in time, grabbing the folds of Ed's coat and bringing his head back out of the water. Wrapping a leg around one of the steps he let go of the ladder and began pulling Ed from the water. The General was rather strong, but the sheer weight that came with the Fullmetal Alchemist was too much even for one arm. Now he was stuck, unable to pull him completely to safety.

"James!?" A small bout of relief swept of him as he heard his undercover name being called.

"Down here!" He looked up to see Riza looking down to him as Fuery scaled the ladder to help pull the Major General to safety.

Both men slowly climbed back up and over the edge placing the natural blonde on his side on the stone cobbles. Immediately all three got to work, Riza checking his pulse, Roy his breathing and Fuery at least taking off the now unbelievably heavy coat. Roy gently held the others head in his hands, he was still breathing, but it was very shallow, to the General's relief Ed had coughed up any water swallowed, but was now shaking heavily. His once sun kissed skin was now cold and a ghostly pale, pink lips now turning blue. A sight that Roy had only hoped would not become a reality was now in front of him. They had to move, and fast. Luckily Major Hawkeye had the exact same thought.

"Quickly, we have to get him warm and out of these clothes. Roy is your Inn close to here?"

Roy shook his head "We'll head to yours."

Well the entrance to the underground tunnel was not that far off, but now wasn't the time to explain that they had been living in there for the past few nights. Ed was top priority.  
Kain gave a quick nod his head and lead the way as fast as possible.

Ed could suddenly feel a different sensation then before. It was still very cold, but he was moving. A wave of panic ran through him. Did he lose his grip on the ladder? Is he gliding down river slowly to death's door? His breathing became even more erratic, only for a voice to reach out to him. The voice was soothing and relaxing as the words flowed to him. His brain couldn't register what they meant, they just calmed him. He could only just muster enough energy to open his eyes slightly to be greeted with a pair of azure looking straight back at him before his lids closed again. Relief spread through his body and he relaxed, he was with Roy. Whether he was dead or alive... he was with Roy.

xXx

Bursting through the door to one of the single rooms Roy placed Ed onto a chair and carefully began to remove each item of waterlogged clothing as quickly as possible. With every bare patch of skin Hawkeye was there with a towel to vigorously dry and somewhat warm the flesh as Fuery wringed every drop of moisture from the youngest man's clothing in the wash basin. Grabbing a blanket Roy wrapped the fabric around his almost lover to give him some privacy as he removed the last garment before carrying him to the bed, tucking the quilt tightly around him and placing even more blankets on top to hurry up the warming process. All they could do now was watch over him and wait.

"What happened.." Kain asked his superior as he gave him and Riza hot drinks before taking a seat close by. Roy took the chair right next to Fullmetal, watching the man for any signs of deterioration or improvement.

"When we were exploring I spotted Derek Hachmar. I didn't believe it at first, until Ed cornered him. He was explaining why he broke contact..very vaguely I must say, and then he ran as someone tried to attack me. Ed dealt with him and we both ran after Derek."

"Yeah, we were the ones Edward landed on. But who is Derek Hachmar? This is the first time I've heard of him" Kain rubbed his sore neck

"He's a firearms specialist like myself...but that is all you need to know." Riza didn't feel the need to continue on, the man was dead it wouldn't make a difference any more. Usually you would always remember the person even after they have gone - Like Maes Hughes. But a traitor like Hachmar didn't deserve anything.

"Is your Inn far from the trade district?"

Roy didn't say anything as he looked to his resting subordinate.

"Roy you need to get him a change of clothes, if needs be I'll escort you and Kain can look after Ed."

"We don't have an Inn." The others looked at him somewhat confused. "We've been sleeping in a storm drain." His eyes turned to the other two. "We lost all Identification and money. Couldn't get a room, where being hunted down so the best place to go was underground." It was probably best not to mention the whole eating at restaurants and running away and hope they didn't need to go into one any time soon. If anything both Fuery and Hawkeye would guess something like breaking the law would have had to have happened for them to survive.

xXx

The current was strong as it tried to force him off the ladder. The freezing water splashing harshly in his face making it even harder to breathe then what it already was then... nothing. He couldn't remember any more. He was a goner. His conciousness took him to a much happier place, with his family and friends. A place where there were no rules, no red tape, a place where everyone can do what their heart desires. A man dominated his visions. Raven hair, onyx eyes, a smirk that could make anyone fall for him within an instant, but to Ed it was that heart melting smile he saw before he fell asleep on that first night in the tunnel. He could feel the sheer warmth emulating as Mustang wrapped his arms around him, he felt secure and his happiest with his superior. A man he admired for so long even if he was an ass hole most of the time sending him on pointless assignments. Even the times when the blonde's height was questioned and his temper flared he couldn't stay mad at the then Colonel. He loved the man, he knew that for sometime. When his military contract came up for renewal he sat with Roy in his office, everyone expected him to leave, after all he hated the military he let that be known at every opportunity. As the Promised Day came and went, he was promoted four ranks from Major to Major General, Alphonse's soul reattached and returned with his own flesh body - his goals were complete. But looking at his handsome superior sitting before him he couldn't leave, not yet. Being offered six months leave was a god send. Six months away from Central to gather and focus his thoughts. Initially it was to decide if he wanted a civilian life or decide to carry on the career that he had for the past seven years. With sub titles of Hero of the people and The saviour of Amestris an awful lot had been achieved - Not bad for a nineteen year old. But during those six months away all he thought about was Roy Mustang. Even if his feelings weren't returned he'd want to stay close by.

It's weird that when you are on the brink of death your mind does this to you, self-reflection and desires. One thing Edward couldn't understand is why his skin felt warm and not freezing cold or numb. He was in a sub-zero river last time he checked.  
He slowly opened his eyelids, to be greeted by a sleeping face. Roy was next to him in a bed. Ed took in their surroundings, he was in an unfamiliar room in a single bed...naked and next to Roy Mustang. He would happily face death again if it meant this happened. Roy had an arm securely wrapped around his waist keeping them within close quarters. It was then when Ed realised that he had one too many blankets covering him, Roy himself wasn't under the same amount of layers, instead only with a couple of sheets covering him up to his waist, also to see he was fully clothed. It was then he realised this wasn't his near death experience any more, if it was the older man would not be clothed and would definitely not be sleeping. He had been rescued from the freezing current.

Ed looked back to the man. Raising his hand he slowly glided it through the fake coloured locks, before placing a kiss on his lips, yes that red tape was annoyingly in play, but he couldn't resist. He looked so vulnerable, which was something only few people had ever seen. Ed had the utmost pleasure seeing the real Roy Mustang, and not the stuck up ass when he's in Amestris military general mode.  
He placed one more lingering kiss on the flame's perfect lips, he swore he felt Roy gently kissing him back. Ed looked at his features carefully. The man was still in a deep sleep, unaware of what he just done, but that sweet smile appeared once more before he pulled Ed closer to him muttering something inaudible.  
The Fullmetal Alchemist rested in the nape of Roy's neck, inhaling the older man's scent before allowing himself to drift off back to sleep. If time could stand still this was where he wanted to be - in the arms of the person his loves and admires... with less blankets of course.


	12. Chapter 12

He didn't know how he got there, well actually that was obvious - he moved, but when did he? The last thing Roy remembered was slumping over the bed with his head resting on folded arms watching over his sleeping subordinate. He only did it because his neck was beginning to ache, and now here he was in that very same bed now, holding the very same person securely in his arms. He mentally took a step back and analysed the situation. Ed was naked, but he was still clothed. Ed was under a multitude of blankets whilst he was under two. He wiggled his jaw and stretched his lips, neither of them sore or ache - which would have happened if Roy finally did get what he really desired as he looked to the brunette's lips. Coming to the conclusion that he was so concerned for the man that he held him in bed as he slept, nothing more.  
  
It was best to get up now or at least transfer himself to the floor before the Elric woke up. Something that was so innocent as him sharing a bed could look so much different in another man's eyes...especially to the one currently fast asleep. As he lay there considering his options his mind trailed off. What would it be like waking up with Ed in his arms in his own bed? He knew what it was like with a women but those weren't meaningful, like the man beside him would be, but everyday with Edward Elric. The morning after the night before...or any time of day seeing that smile on his face as he slept, knowing he was the one that caused it. He nearly lost him yesterday, remembering the fear that was pumping through him as he saw the slouched body on that ladder. He nearly lost him without feeling their lips touch once more, before their bodies mingled be it for comfort or passion. He was a man of his word, he couldn't break the agreement for at least one night with Fullmetal, but even then one night would not be enough.

Slowly and cautiously he slid his arm out from underneath his subordinate and ever so gently rose to sit on the edge of the bed, rubbing his tired eyes as they adjusted to the sunlight piercing the thin material that was supposed to be their curtains, but looked more like a veil someone would wear to a funeral. He looked back to see Ed still in the same position as he left him, he looked even more at peace then that time he watched him sleep in the tunnel, he even had a rather heart warming smile. Roy couldn't help but smile back before standing to walk around the bed, taking his place back on the seat he last remembered being on before he drifted off. Rummaging through his coat he pulled out his bog standard pocket watch, it didn't feel right, it was too light he would fear he would break it as he pressed the button on top to allow the casing to unlock and open revealing the face on the inside. He missed his State pocket watch. He had three hours before his meeting with the informant, as much as he wanted Edward to go with him it was best that he just rested for the day. Knowingly if he woke up before the Flame left he would kick up a fuss and demand to go with him, saying how fine he was and that there was nothing to worry about, so it was probably best for the general to head out as soon as possible. Since their cases were still in the underground tunnel it was a case of either wearing the same clothes as yesterday, but Mustang wasn't keen on the idea on the risk that someone may have seen yesterday's..occurrence was slim to none at best but he'd rather be on the safe side. The other option was to borrow someone else's, but that was easier said then done. With no knowing the whereabouts of Falman and Havoc the only one who was Roy's size was Ed himself..and his clothes are drenched. Riza was immediatly out of the question which left the man with Kain Fuery...

xXx

Another shirt too small, everything was too tight, Roy knew it would be a long shot, but it was worth a try.

"You want me to escort you sir?" Hawkeye immediatly taking up the role as Roy's assistant

"Sorry Major, but the informant was only going to meet me and Edward. I don't want to alarm him by bringing someone he isn't expecting."

The General was about to get up and leave before one last item was handed to him to try on. A smart, black dress shirt which did look slightly bigger than all the other garments he had been given. In the privacy of Riza averting her eyes elsewhere Roy swept his own shirt off his shoulders and threaded his arms into the sleeves before buttoning it up completely. The sleeves felt like they were straining, ready to tear off from his arms from the sheer pressure of the Flame's arms, but the main body of the shirt was a little tight, but not too badly. It showed that there was muscle under there, but on a minimum scale. He wasn't the kind of man that goes around flexing his muscles to anyone, he wasn't Alex Armstrong. But instead whenever he brought someone home for 'a coffee' their expressions to the well sculptured torso was something he never got old of. It was like a little hidden treat for whoever nakedly graced his presence.

Fuery walked over to his satchel and pulled out a pocket knife, flicking it open he carefully cut the stitching where the sleeve met shoulder. It was a shame to ruin such a wonderfully formal shirt, but it had to be done. Once the more tight fabric had been cut away he cut further into the shoulder and side until the General was happy when his arms were able to move freely without restraint. Sleeveless shirt it was. He kept with the pants he wore yesterday, Fuery was small and thin, there was no way in hell that he was going to fit in them. Borrowing Fuery's beanie hat he tucked all the blonde hair under and let the rim of the woollen item drop to just above his eye sockets, hiding his blonde eyebrows. Even though his eyes remained blue he had to make sure the informant could at least recognise him somewhat. At least 48 hours of stubble mildly covered his lower face so he wasn't instantly recognisable, but when he was done and retrieved his and Ed's belongings he was having a shave. In honesty what he was wearing he wouldn't be seen dead wearing it around Amestris so no one would recognise him anyway.

He quietly snuck back into his and Ed's room to see the younger man spread out, but still fast asleep now on his front. Grabbing the lighter from his coat pocket along with the pocket watch he took one last look and left Ed in the care of Riza and Kain as he walked out the door.

xXx

In a bustling street in the trade district Rot leant against the wall watching the everyday citizens doing their everyday things. Just thinking about his very own everyday thing was sitting at a desk signing never ending mounds of paperwork. How much would he be greeted with when he got back? He probably wouldn't be able to even walk in to his office. It's where Ed could come in handy, just slip him a few piles now and again. It was better doing paper work with someone else, someone who wouldn't point a gun at you if you try to finish work early or constantly looking over your shoulder. He could actually have a pleasant conversation, lift the depressing mood. He returned to the task at hand, receiving glances from people but nothing threatening..well to be honest the General looked more threatening. Bare arms, stubble, hat down low..he could have pulled off going through the Amestris border with Falman and Breda. One person in particular caught his eye, leaning on the opposite wall a bit further down the street. Their eyes met, but Roy glanced back to the crowds. The man was of medium build, messy brown hair and about as muscular as Roy himself.

"You got a light?" A voice suddenly called out beside him in a strong Drachman accent.

Within an instant, and without looking away from the crowds of civilians, Roy got his lighter ( Well Derek's lighter ) immediatly flicking the lid open to produce a flame. When a small plume of smoke entered his line of vision he snapped the casing shut and replacing it back into his pocket.

"You looking for something in particular?"

"Yes, but it's very rare, none of these stalls or shops seem to have it. Not surprised really, but can't help feeling disappointed."

"Maybe I can help? What are you after?"

"A specific vase, a Juneale it's incredibly rare." Using that very word that got him across the border.

There was a brief moment of silence

"Look at me" the person said

Roy turned his head to look at what was the very same man his eyes made contact only moments ago from across the way.  
His features were being carefully examined as the man took another drag of his cigarette, blowing the smoke out away from the general from the side of his mouth.

"This way."

Mustang was lead to a nearby building hiding in a back alley from the busy street. The man ahead of him threw the butt across the way and opened the door, allowing the guest to enter the house first before following shortly after

"Take a seat" The deep Drachman accent suddenly changed to Amestrian, pointing his arm into one of the back rooms.

Inside the room was an old table and three chairs, most likely the third one was supposed to be Ed's. On the table itself were two files either side neatly aligned in each of the corners furthest away from him.

"Pardon for my disrespect sir, as you are well aware of my situation..as well as yours of course. Henry Wheelen, First Lieutenant under Colonel Greene at West headquarters." He held out his hand and shook hands with Roy

"General Roy Mustang, central headquarters. I must apologise for the absence of my subordinate who was supposed to have joined me, we ran into a spot of trouble yesterday and he has not fully recovered. I have to say the way you can change your accent is remarkable."

Henry smiled "Yeah been here too long. I've been doing this job for most of my military career, mainly in Aerugo. But in all my years I'd never thought I'd meet the famous Flame Alchemist in person, it's a shame your circumstances didn't allow me meet Fullmetal. The stories of you two that we hear are stuff of legend." He pulled out his cigarettes from his pocket "You don't mind do you?" Roy shook his head as Henry placed a stick to his lips and lit it, deeply inhaling before releasing the smoke from the side of his mouth. "Even though I am curious as to what happened to you two we'd best get straight to business. I don't want to keep you here for longer then you are required."

He slid the folder from his right in front of him, opening the thin cardboard carefully and taking out a picture.

"I believe this is the guy you've been after, Second lieutenant... Scott James?"

Roy looked carefully at the photograph and nodded

"Came to central Drachma not long before I received message from Amestris. Just happened to come across him in the street after receiving a picture. He came with another guy, who of which I don't know."

He handed Roy the picture of the second man

"Richard Prassen, he's another one we want to question."

Henry took a long drag before exhaling before handing Roy the folder to his left.

"He's usually in the poor district of central, but don't let that fool you. Where he is supposedly staying is hoarded with weapons and luxuries. Inside that folder I've mark 'hotspots' where he's been frequenting."  
Roy took the folder and skimmed through the contents, it was incredibly detailed and very professional. This man had worked extremely hard in such a short amount of time, even putting his life on the line to get this information.  
"Thank you Henry, your hard work and dedication will not go unnoticed."

"Stop, you're making me blush. Seriously sir, be careful. People in that area are ex Amestrian, some military gone AWOL. This goes much further than a collapsed building. It's risky enough that you and Fullmetal are here, you guys are known throughout the land, the bounty on your heads is insane. I can assure you sir my loyalty to my homeland will never perish, I'm not like these traitors. I will help you in any way I can, of course you can't keep visiting me here. But I am always around this area if you need me." He stubbed out his remaining cigarette and stood and saluted.

Roy stood and shook his hand once more before heading out the back way. Proceeding back to the storm drain where his and Ed's belongings thankfully remained. He'd defiantly need to talk to Henry again in the near future. Questions he needs answering already, but at the moment those can wait. He has got the required information from their meeting and, for now, that was all he needed to focus on.

xXx

Ed glared at his cards before looking to the faces of his opponents. Both had a neutral features, not letting anyone else see their joy or disappointment. A click of the door echoed in the eerily quiet room before closing behind him. Ed knew who it was, but decided to ignore it along with the other two as tensions grew. More and more coins were being put in, their chiming echoing in the eerily quiet room, with Ed placing the money from Derek's wallet.

"I'm out" Fuery finally gave up and folded his hand, sitting back in his chair to let out a long sigh of defeat.

The sound of a chair slowly scraping across the wooden floor cut into the once again silence as the newest figure in the room took a seat at the table. Ed was concentrating too much on Riza's poker face to even notice.  
The two stared each other down each grinning, gloating and every other trick in the book to get the other to surrender and fold their cards, giving them the victory.  
Riza placed her cards face up revealing a full house.

"Royal flush" Ed victoriously placed his cards face up much to Riza's dismay as he pulled the small mound of money to him.

"Did everything go alright sir?" Fuery managed to talk over Ed's gloating.

"Very smoothly, once we all meet tomorrow I'll go through the details. In the meantime deal again, I want to bankrupt you all."

"Pfft as if General, with what money? Last time I checked you had none."

Roy leant over near Fullmetal's ear to talk low, but loud enough for everyone to hear

"Last time I checked that money you used wasn't even yours, so we'll keep it civilized and you can split it 50/50 with me."

"Yeah and the guy never asked for his wallet back so I kept it. So it is mine."

Roy's voice turned to a whisper only audible to Ed

"Fifty fifty or I'll tell them about those cards you are hiding between your legs."

No way could the General have seen, he didn't even cheat after the man had entered the room. But he couldn't take any chances and shifted half of his pile to the man beside him, cursing the older man under his breath.

Being unable to cheat was terrible, his cards were bad..very bad. But he wasn't going to quit. It was him versus Roy in the final showdown and for the first time since this morning Ed looked at his superior. He was surprised that the General was rather muscular for someone who just snaps his fingers in a fight. His arms were beautifully toned and flexed. All the times Roy had shown off some muscle Ed was always somewhere else. He remembered when Alphonse told him of Lust's attack on him and Hawkeye and how amazing the then Colonel had sealed up a life threatening wound, Ed could only think how bad ass he looked as the wind lifted the jacket in the breeze revealing those abdominal muscles. He could only dream what was under that sleeveless shirt. But now was not the time to be mesmerized by Mustang's physique. Ed had to win, he had to get Roy to fold his cards, but how? When Kain folded his hand he left the table allowing Ed to slide his chair round, without losing his hidden deck of cards to get a much better view of the older man.  
Roy looked at his cards before looking back at Ed with a textbook smirk, a smirk everyone knew that he was going to be victorious with the outcome. But the temporary brunette was looking back at him with an almost identical look.  
All available money was in the center of the table when the time had come.

"Show me.." Roy finally called out to Ed.

"You first.." Ed looked back to his low scoring two pairs.

"You REALLY want me to?" The smirk was replaced with a soft snigger, this couldn't be good for Ed. "Maybe you should come over here and look to save you the humiliation."

The general ushered his subordinate over. Ed hesitated at first, discreetly putting the spare deck in his pocket before walking around to where his superior sat.  
Mustang's eyes met Ed's and remained as he showed the blonde his cards. The teal eyes lit up in horror seeing him with also two pairs, but two ace of spaces and two queen of spades. That was why Roy asked for a game, because he knew Ed couldn't keep the cards. Riza was the dealer this game and his cheating would have be discovered. It left Ed no choice but to admit defeat.

"Shit, I fold."

He watched as Roy collected his winnings like the smug bastard he was.


	13. Chapter 13

All seven Amestrian soldiers were reunited around a small wooden table. A private room in a quiet bar, with the first and only round of drinks.  
Roy placed the two folders he acquired from Henry the previous day in his lap and took a sip of scotch. He savoured the taste before swallowing, allowing the amber liquid to slowly and lightly burn it's way down his throat. It was nice to have a proper drink and Ed could no doubt less agree with him. It was well deserved for all the problematic situations they had been put through the past week. It wasn't exactly a time to properly relax like how would do after a hard days work at home but he savoured the moment he didn't have to constantly watch his or Ed's back, looking over the shoulder in case they were being followed or about to get attacked. The older man had been more and more on edge since he witnessed Ed's near death experience. Yes he's seen death before and friends had been and gone, but Ed was a whole new experience, and he never wanted to see anything like that happen again. Finishing his glass he looked up to see everyone else apart chatting solemnly. Details of said event were being talked over again. He looked over to Ed who was as quiet as he was, looking at his glass before quickly downing the contents in one gulp. A slight grimace fell over his face before returning back to it's previous state. It was clear he didn't like hearing the moment talked about over and over again, The older man placed a comforting hand on the Fullmetal's knee. A small gesture the made Ed lift his head and look to this superior to be greeted by a warm and sympathetic smile. Now it was time to end this trip down memory lane which was better forgotten for now and continue on with the reason they were here in the first place as he turned his attentions back to the rest of the table.

"First of all, is everyone alright? No one got shot, everyone got their belongings?" The question aimed at Havoc, Breda and Falman.

"We're all fine sir, no injuries and all items accounted for."

Roy placed the two photographs of Scott James and Richard Prassen in the center of the table. All the other six lent forward to look closely at the pictures.

"James is around the poorest district, holed up in a building laced with weapons. He has been seen with Prassen on several occasions when he was observed. Bare in mind these pictures were when we sent out the message to the undercover soldiers here so expect some changes since then. They would be stupid if they remained the same as the day they ran from Amestris."

He placed a small map of the poor district on the table, certain areas were dotted and circled.

"Thanks to the excellent work of this officer we know where he goes." Placing a picture of a small house at the relevant marking. "This is where he stays most of the time. But not alone, reportedly with three others. It is for definite that none of these three are Prassen, but during surveillance these other three were barely seen so not much information is available. Our man is keeping tabs on this property and I will meet with him on occasion to see if he has anything else."

He looked around the table before placing several more pictures in the relevant place. "Frequented bars and restaurants.. and this place."

Instead of placing the picture on the map he held it up for all to see, before opening the other folder to read the notes.

"This place is the Great Fisherman bar, don't let the wooden exterior and happy fisherman sign on the front fool you. Inside in a hidden basement is where criminals gather to boast, plan and even execute their ideas. It is common knowledge that James frequents this bar, now I'm not asking any of you to go undercover and infiltrate this place. Our undercover man is already part of it, investigating his own target, but he is keeping ears and eyes open for us. We will be focusing on the areas marked on the map. Any questions?"

He looked up to see Falman, Breda and Havoc staring at him in what looked like... disbelief? Were they in shock at how well detailed the information was? How well he executed the information to his colleagues? Where they just so mesmerized by his sheer and undeniable leadership?

"What's with the get up chief?" As bold as it always came from Jean as he nodded towards Mustangs choice of attire.

Well he did have a point, the general always dressed smartly no matter what the outfit. Suit trousers with matching jacket and an open collared shirt to complete the look. Well he was still wearing an open collared shirt, it just had his sleeves missing showing off his impressively toned arms.

"You been taking fashion tips from Colonel Armstrong sir? Y'know flexing the guns." Breda kept a straight face whilst the other two sniggered

"Is that your new way of impressing the ladies? You going to rip it off in the town center as a distraction?" Havoc added before the three of them burst into laughter.

The very thought of Roy acting like Alex was disturbing to the other three colleagues sitting quietly. Sure Ed wouldn't mind that shirt being removed, but in a completely different place and definitely away from the public eye, but not in the flamboyant way everyone else was imagining.

"All this was because you can't keep away from women who are well out of your league Jean." Fuery defended his superior "Not to mention you shouldn't be even attempting to pick up women in this country!"

Roy placed his hand up to calm the situation, "Havoc's punishment will be dealt with." What he 'forgot' to say was over a long period of time. Unknown to the others Havoc had paid for their drinks and even the fee to hire the secluded room. "But for now we need to survey the designated areas."

He takes the pictures off the map and places them with corresponding pieces of paper some single sheets, others multiple.

"Havoc, Breda and Falman. I want you to observe these three restaurants." Handing them each the picture of the relevant building and observation notes "Have your lunch there by all means. No Alcohol and no chatting up women."

Every one's gazes turned back to Havoc.

"Hawkeye and Fuery you two will take the bars, same rules apply. Edward you take the park and I'll take the house. Everyone be ready tomorrow, our assignment has finally begun."

xXx

Ed was going through Henry's notes, so much information concerning a simple public park. Places marked where meetings took place, route of walk, direction of entering and leaving. It was clear that Amestris found a gem in this intelligence officer and even better, he wasn't a traitor threatening to destroy the entirety of central command and those in it. He paid close attention to the description of all people that were met down to their shoes. There was a good five frequent visitors three male, two female. One seemed to be in a close friendship with their target, but unknown if it was a romantic one. It was something they could use to their advantage if anything seemed to be 'off' with her.  
His attention turned to the door as Mustang stepped through with a sigh, slinging his coat to the nearest chair, kicking his boots to the side of the door before walking over to the single bed laying down on the not amazingly comfortable mattress that he was adamant the blonde would have whilst he slept on a makeshift bed of clothes and blankets on the floor.

"You want the bed tonight?"

"No, I'm fine, just let me stay here for a moment."

Ed stared at him for a moment, knew what the problem was and he wasn't going to let it go unnoticed any more.

"Sit up" He commanded to his superior as he placed his notes on the small table in front of him

"What?"

"You heard me." He stood up and walked over to the side of the bed

"You may be only two ranks under me Fullmetal, but that still doesn't give you the right to order me around."

"Yes I may be, but it doesn't help me noticing that you've been silently complaining about your back after the first night in that tunnel. So I'm asking you to sit up so we can sort it out."

Roy was about to retaliate, but knew it was pointless. He thought he hid it well, but Ed had a good eye for the minor details, even if no one else in his unit had noticed the blonde would.  
Slowly he rose to a seated position, feeling the mattress move as another body climbed on, taking it's place behind him. Within moments he felt fingers kneading into his shoulders lightly at first before more and more pressure was applied. It was a welcoming sensation to the small stabs of pain that attacked his muscles with every movement and it got even better as the hands moved closer together, connecting to the junction where his neck met his torso as the pads of the natural blonde's thumbs kneaded his nape.

"Care to say why you have refused using the bed?"

"Because you needed it more."

"Needed Roy, needed for one day. You've been sleeping on a hard floor for the entire week, regardless of what ever makeshift mattress you've made. I was fine after a day's rest, heck that wasn't even a day."

Roy didn't answer

Ed sighed. Roy had always been as stubborn and put everyone else first, just like him...well most of the time. Ed knew that the General cared for him greatly as a subordinate, a friend and almost lover. But the older man needed to know that he should just take care of number one.

"Why don't you let me take the house and you take the park?"

"And may I ask why you want to do that?"

"Roy, you're one of the highest ranking officers in the military, but that doesn't mean to take the more important and dangerous areas." His hands slowly kneaded down his back "For once let someone else do it."

"I couldn't possibly..." Roy hissed as Ed pressed against a painful area

"Take your shirt off and lay on your front" The younger man got off the bed.

"That's an awfully bold statement Ed." He smirked and turned his head to the side to catch a glimpse of the younger man.

"How am I supposed to help you if I can't properly massage the area? The shirt is getting in the way."

Roy slowly rose, unbuttoning his shirt carefully. As soon as he the fabric began to slide off his shoulders Ed turned around, no matter how tempting it was to properly look to see if in reality the toned torso was better than all those raunchy dreams he had over the years. Roy placed the shirt neatly on the back of a chair and slowly laid face down on the bed, clenching his teeth when a stab of pain shot up his back, placing a pillow to rest on. Within moments he felt himself being straddled, Ed's fingers softly caressing his lower back, gradually applying pressure just like he did with his shoulders.  
Ed watched carefully as to where the worst parts were, seeing the general clench his fists when he hit a certain area. Carefully kneading until he felt the tension disappear. He couldn't help but take a moment to admire the older man's back. So toned, he could see the strength in his shoulders. The way his arms were positioned resting his head he could clearly see his biceps tense and relax. He was beginning to think his dreams didn't even come close to what this man's body was in reality like. He had to hold back so much from leaning down and placing gentle kisses down his spine.

"Maybe you should have quit the military and become my personal masseuse."

Ed avoided answering and quickly returned to the previous conversation.

"I mean it Roy, you're the next in line, you shouldn't give yourself the most risky or dangerous tasks."

"What kind of General would I be if I let everyone risk their lives?"

"One who is safe!"

There was a moment of pause as Ed stopped his administrations to get his point across. They both knew how it felt to lose someone you care deeply about, Ed loved Roy with every ounce of his being.

"I understand your concern, but I'm not going to be one of those people who stay stuck behind an office desk until I retire. I do enough of that as it is now."

"At least let me take the house.."

Roy sighed and turned round, lifting himself up onto his elbows to look at his subordinate. Oblivious to the fact that he was in quite a compromising position with himself being topless and a young, handsome man straddling his hips

"How do you know that the park won't be just as dangerous?"

He did have a point. In Ed's notes there were mentions of fights and dangerous men that would meet in the supposedly calm and relaxing public area. Both areas high on the priority list and just as bad as each other. So even if they did switch areas it would still be risky for both of them. Roy sat up to a seated position so he and Ed were only inches apart.

"I'll be careful." He looked sincere into Ed's deep blue eyes, brushing his hair out of the way and behind his ear once again. They remained there for what felt like an eternity, looking to each other, breathing in the other's scent until Roy's back had to break the moment.

"Do you want me to finish the massage or not?" Ed smiled at his superior. He didn't have any reason to doubt Roy and his abilities, his rank said enough. Yes they would both be in danger no matter which area they were, even the others had a high possibility if someone became suspicious. But they were Amestris' best and had on many occasions put their lives on the line for their country.

Roy smirked "Well I was beginning to enjoy it.." He laid back down and turned on his front allowing the man above to expertly knead his back once more.


	14. Observation begins

Someone was going to have to re scale the map, what Ed thought was a small park was actually something on a much larger in real life. Something that on paper only covered a few houses was in reality around the size of Central headquarters. Forget this being a one man job this was a job for the entire unit! It would probably take him the whole day to fully scour the area. Paths dividing and meandering through wooded, grassed and flowered areas. Even in this cold weather Ed was surprised at just how many different flowers could bloom. The rows of colour leading him, reminiscent of Roy's garden back in Amestris, but this wouldn't lead to a warm, comfortable house. To a man with obsidian orbs and raven hair. Instead it lead him to a dreary opening of grass, grass that had been trampled repetitively on and in some places brown patches instead of green. He followed the path, a small gathering of trees greeted him in the distance, their canopy still thick with green leaves. Ed thought back to Henry's observation notes, the way the small wooded area was encircled by a loose gravelled path, this is where some of the gatherings took place and he was in luck. Standing just off the pathway were four men.

He got as close as he could, taking his newspaper he brought on the way from under his arm and taking a seat on the nearest bench he kept a eye watching the men whilst pretending to read through the very dull events that happen in Drachman every day life, and he thought Amestris was boring. At least in his homeland 'Missing Cat' isn't headline news. Looking back to the small group he recognised one of the men, well recognised by description from Henry's notes. Quite a scrawny man, no bigger than himself with shaggy brown hair. Frazen Matlock, ex Drachman military. The man had got kicked out for screwing up too much, was a liability to any officer he was placed under. Forced to go into the army, he was from a crooked family of high-profile thieves and con artists. The military took him from a young age in an attempt to cut the family business, but in the end wasn't necessary. His carelessness for a simple task of checking a room for weapons got his entire family killed during a botched drugs trade. The now ex second lieutenant Scott James had been seen with this man on several occasions since word had got to Henry. Maybe this was a chance that he'll see one of Amestris' most wanted man, of course he couldn't capture him, as much as he wanted to, but a more up to date facial description could help them greatly in the future. Matlock was very vocal, not loud enough for Ed to hear properly, but by the way his arms were flailing everywhere and unable to stand still for more than five seconds it was clear something had riled the man up.

He needed to get closer, he needed to hear what they were saying, which was were the undergrowth in the center of the pathway came in. Calmly walking away until he was out of their sight, and anyone else's for that matter, he dipped into the dense foliage, slowly making his way through the undergrowth back towards his point of interest. He was surprised that the ground was so boggy and not frozen over, it cushioned his steps, giving him the ability to get much closer undetected.

"Well where the hell is he then!?" Even though Ed couldn't see him he clearly knew Matlock was speaking, being he was the only visibly agitated man before. "He's the one that told us all to meet here today, so it's not really setting a good example that the prick is late!"

"Maybe he got caught up with business." A deep voice slowly replied. It was hard to determine if this other person was just tired or just didn't care.

"I don't care if he's caught up fucking your mother. The bastard was adamant we all show up and then he doesn't?"

Even Ed could tell the man-made a serious mistake with his comeback before the sounds of a scuffle broke out. Every curse word in the book were thrown to each other as the two remaining men did their best to restrain and calm the situation.

"Guys calm down! he will be here any time soon! We can't let him see you two ripping each other's throats out!"

"He's not here because he's dead along with those two other useless idiots."

Ed's attention jumped again to the newest voice. A deep tone, so calm, but more noticeably the owner of the voice was Amestrian.

"What!?" A new voice from the original group called out

"Bout time you showed your face again, Nicholas."

A name to the voice, it was a start.

"I've been a bit pre occupied. You know how it is, I can't be everywhere at once."

Ed couldn't recognise the well spoken voice, surely there couldn't have been that many people with such upper classed voices like that in the Amestrian military. He'd report his findings to the others anyway, but until then he had to move closer, he had to get a visual. James or Prassen? It could even be one of the many undercover Amestrian investigators, even though to tell which side they were on would be extremely difficult. They only knew an estimate of how many other soldiers were stationed in Central Drachma alone and knew none of their Identifications so unless he confronted them, which would be bad no matter if they were loyal to Amestris or not.

"Did you say they're dead?" Another different voice from one of the other men joined

"Open your ears you idiot, yes they are dead. They were found in the river with their necks snapped."

"You don't sound at all bothered by it."

"Who ever did it did us a favour. He was useless. He didn't know anything about the Amestrian military that I didn't already know. All I am curious about was who killed them? Byfield I understand, but the other two? No way was it the military."

"You think we got someone else barging into our patch?"

"In a way yes. Who? We don't know, but I bel-"

A loud snap stopped everyone from what they were doing. Ed looked down only to silently curse himself realising the sound originated from him stepping on a stick. He still couldn't see the face of the Amestrian, and the only way at this moment in time is if they find him, which won't be useful when he gets captured and/or killed. Slowly but surely he lowered himself to the ground, glad that the falling snow hadn't penetrated the canopy above him, allowing himself to camouflage with the cold, but damp ground. His coat wasn't the exact brown of the mud but would be hard to tell unless someone was right in front of him. As he looked he could see the thick undergrowth being pushed by a force much stronger than the wind. Someone was coming in to investigate, the sound of him was getting louder. Ed's heart beat was rapidly pounding in his chest, he needed to hide, crawling into a thick bush of bramble, a decision he would regret later. But anything is better than being caught and if this guy was truly Amestrian his identity would be under threat, all he would need to do is see an automail leg and a scarred shoulder and that would be him done. The perfect bargaining tool, The Fullmetal Alchemist.  
He could see the boots, black leather, laces badly tied up but enough to not trip over. The false brunette held his breath as the man stopped straight in front of him. Ed placed his hands gently on the ground shoulder width apart ready to boost himself up if he did indeed get seen. He knew his hand to hand combat skills were one of the best after all the years of training. His younger self would have just burst straight out attempt to beat one guy then taunt and beat up the others...and he would have done that as well, be it if he could still use Alchemy. There was no clue if any of these people could use Alchemy themselves and if they did he was going to lose this fight if he was found.

xXx

Even though their two areas were close by Roy split off from Ed rather early then what he intended. The younger man had to know his bearings around the park, find the best observation points and meeting locations, which were stupidly enough always in certain areas at certain points. He watched as his subordinate entered through a small archway and out of sight before continuing to his destination.

It didn't take long for him to reach the house, it looked like any other house in the area. Worn down, several tiles missing from the roof, a stereotypical smashed first story window and a collection of trash bags ageing by the door. The area itself was bustling with carts, people looking for scraps of wood, metal or any kind of material they could get their hands on be it for repairing their homes, others making furniture to sell. It was sad for the General to see the poor district in this state. Amestris was in the process of improving the poorer areas in central with Alexander Armstrong fronting the regeneration..which had mixed responses, but they were improving the living conditions and health care for all.

He took to leaning against a wall behind and to the side of a man showing off playing card tricks. He watched carefully as the man tricked and amazed every day passers-by with one of the most basic card tricks you could do, other times using sleight of hand to astonish the ever-increasing crowd. Roy chuckled to himself thinking he could get this guy to give Ed a few pointers, maybe then the younger man would actually get away with cheating to win whenever they were playing at the same time.

Nothing got past Roy's eyes, Ed's apparent cheating, Havoc's slacking off and especially not someone leaving the target house.

A tall man, fairly thin, Roy would have put him in his late thirties early forties. Flat cap over light brown hair, dark green trench coat reaching halfway down his smart black pants. He stopped to see what all the commotion was, it gave Roy a chance to go over his features. Thick dark eye brows with a scar that left a bald patch in the middle of the brow above his right eye, which itself was cloudy compared to the emerald left eye. Did his eye consist with the scar above it? He made a mental note of the seriously unimpressed man as he pulled his cap down low and trudged past him and out of view into the more crowded streets. Of course he wanted to follow the man since he did leave his observation target, but that was what he was there for- to observe the house and see who goes in and out. Any descriptions would be given to Henry for better knowledge.   
His eyes focused once again on the card magician, gullible people start placing coins on the small table believing they can beat him, only to lose. Another person caught his eye, not at the house but in the crowd. Snaking through the countless men and women was someone who clearly didn't want to be seen, A hood almost covering their entire face. It was hard to tell the person's gender as the meandering continued before they were out of sight.   
Focus on the house, that was all he had to do, but there were so many suspicious people around the area it was hard not to notice them. One caught his eye after another, maybe this would have been better if he had extra help, maybe Ed should have come with him and put one of the others onto park watch. He could have positioned the other man at the opposite end, to keep an eye out around the back which would be where the incognito criminals would enter. Roy had to walk around the place, he couldn't stay watching the front door.

Walking past the front window he heard shouting, unable to understand the content but someone was incredibly pissed nonetheless. The temptation to look through the front window was great, but then he'd just look like a flashing beacon. Who looks through the window of a strange house in this neighbourhood and doesn't get noticed? He carried on finding a small side alley beside the building. About half way down was a couple of people, a woman and a man, whether they were actually occupants or visitors of the target house he wouldn't know but the fact they were there acting suspiciously anyway could have honestly meant anything. He made his way down walking closer and closer to them, keeping up his authoritative figure, look like a worried or lost sheep criminals would jump on you in a second, rob you or use you for their dirty work.  
The woman noticed Roy approaching, but did nothing. She continued talking. Roy walked past and caught some of the conversation

"Someone's out for us."

"What? Cause he kicked the bucket? Nah, that guy had what was coming to him, useless waste of space."

Well that definitely got his attention. Now had to stay in ear shot, luckily for him a moderately attractive woman appeared, long brown hair in tight ringlets which dropped to at least the small of her back. Face was average, nothing particularly striking about her features, she would no doubt look better without all that make up littering her skin. But alas it was time to bring out the Mustang charm, it was a bit rusty but at least he didn't have to go all out. Giving her his best smile, keeping eye contact with her big brown eyes.

She smiled sweetly back before replying "I ain't some back alley floozy, piss off."

The General was rather shocked, flabbergasted so to speak. This was possibly the first ever woman apart from Hawkeye to discard his advances, and his may have been in world record time. Maybe she was just annoyed that this meeting had been in a shifty alley, maybe this alley was actually a place where the ladies of the night gather for clients, he didn't know. But he had to stall her for time to at least hear what those two people had to say.

"No! Wait! Someone with such grace and beauty could never be compared to those...floozies." Roy didn't even know that word existed until now, he'd rather use the term 'Ladies of the night' when it came to describing prostitutes.

The woman scowled at him "What do ya really want then?"

"It's been a rather long time since I've been in this area and I'm a little lost, I've got to find some certain buildings and I keep going round in circles.." He described some of the architecture from around his and Ed's 'mind map' of Central Drachma. The woman stopped to think for a while before beginning to tell the directions, which Roy knew of course, but now he can hear on the conversation he really wanted to listen to.

"Berry is pissed off to hell. You know what the guy is like, mind you all of them have a stick up their ass."

"Not all of them!"

"No, I meant the Amestrians, they order us around like they are the people in charge. This was our fight and then they show up!"

Roy nodded to the woman in front of him as he continued listening in to the conversation behind him.

"Glad he's gone, someone's done us a favour. They think they can come here and order us around, If whoever did it can knock the rest off then I'd be very happy. "

"Would you now?"

Roy quickly spun and looked to the newest figure to be standing right behind the two now petrified people. His deep booming voice even sent a shiver down the General's back. It was expected that the voice would be accompanied by a heavily muscular frame like that of Alex Armstrong, but the man was only just taller than Mustang himself. A full head of buzzed red hair and golden eyes. He was too far away to see any other distinguishing features which may help them later, as much as he wanted to get a little closer he found the distance from the group ever-increasing before realising he was being dragged away by the woman he suddenly forgot about.

"This is no place for us to be right now."

Roy turned back one last time to see the two smaller framed people cowering on the floor, making a mental note of their appearance in a hope that they might survive their ordeal.

xXx

It felt like hours and the Fullmetal Alchemist was beginning to get cramp. The man was ever so carefully scouring the bramble where he was hidden. He heard the snaps of other dried vegetation snap under feet, great more were coming in.

"Found anything?" The well spoken Amestrian asked

"No"

"Look it was probably just some squirrel, don't worry about it."

"I'm not worrying, but the fact that Harrison and those other two were killed I'm not taking any chances."

"Byfield was useless, you said it yourself. Besides he always stuck his nose in everyone else's business, I bet he stuck it in too far and paid the consequences."

The man directly in front of Ed inhaled and exhaled deeply before spinning on his heels and heading back the way he came. Relief swept across Fullmetal's entire being. As much as he wanted to get out of there as soon as possible but chances were too high that someone may be watching the area for a set amount of time, just to be on the safe side. The traitorous Amestrian seemed certain that Ed wasn't a squirrel. For now he had to remain where he was. The sun was beginning to set so the best he could hope for is to wait to leave under the cover of darkness..

xXx

The team reconvened the next day in the small space of Roy and Ed's room to report their findings. Fuery, Havoc, Falman and Breda found nothing, which was fine, you can't find out all the information you need after just one day of observation. These things always took time, Roy and everyone else knew that, but seeing the frustration on their face was clear as day. Hawkeye had found out names, but none that came up in Henry's notes.

Fuery used the chance. before the two highest ranking officers told their findings, to get a break for fresh air. He was used to having the unit all in one room but seven people crammed into one small bedroom was a bit too much and the open window wasn't any more help.

Ed turned to look at Roy as the memories from the early hours replayed.

_ He managed to get back to the inn, covered in mud and freezing cold. He was reaching for the door handle when it was suddenly pulled further away from him and Roy Mustang took its place. His coat was dangling halfway off one shoulder and shirt misbuttoned. He stood to the side to allow the younger man through and Ed straight away proceeded to take his soiled clothing off before throwing it in the bath tub, He'd clean it later. It wasn't until he washed the muck from his face and hands that he saw a cut leading from his left cheek to his seemed Roy noticed it before hand as he stood in the doorway with cotton wool and a small bottle of antiseptic, where he got it Ed has no clue, but he was thankful anyway, even when it contacted with his skin making him wince slightly. The administrations suddenly stopped when the two made eye contact, the small bloodstained cotton wool moved a lot slower on the wound to an almost soft stroking on the skin. There they remained just...staring deep into each other's eyes. Ed didn't know what to do in this situation, well he knew what he wanted, but any physical contact was going to be by Roy and Roy alone. He was going to stick to it no matter how close they were to each other. But the more he felt Roy's breath on his lips the harder it was to hold back. The dark eyes left his gaze to look at the now well thoroughly cleaned cut.   
_

_"Were you...going to look for me?"_

_Roy just nodded as he turned his attention back to Ed's false blue orbs.  
_

_"Thank you."_

_"Could have one of my best men getting lost out there could I?"  
_

_And with that he walked away and back to bed._

To say he was pissed off was an understatement. All these mixed signals were making his head hurt. He couldn't think clearly in a room full of loud people to find a way round this and it will take longer than five minutes to think of a solution.

All talk and thought immediatly stopped as soon as an out of breath Fuery burst through the door "We...we have.. to go!"


	15. Déjà vu

"What's got your panties in a twist?" Havoc never got a reply as Kain quickly left the room as fast as he burst in.  
The rest of the unit looked to each other in confusion, it was clear that something was wrong, but they didn't know what since no details were given. Roy decided not to wait around for the spectacled man to return, instead furrowing his brow and quickly heading to the room opposite where the communications and surveillance expert was hurriedly stuffing his and Riza's belongings into which ever case was closest.

"Fuery, slow down, what's the problem?"

The Second Lieutenant didn't pause in his actions as he hurriedly packs the bundle of clothes in his hands "They found us sir, the military... they are coming up here any minute."

The General quickly turned and rushed back into his and Ed's room seeing everyone else now looking even more confused when their superior comes rushing back "Everyone grab your belongings and head towards the back exit. Meet back at the monument near the church."

Instantly everyone leapt to their feet, Riza rushing past to her shared room to help Fuery. The mention of the monument was a big enough clue as to what is or is about to happen quite serious. Havoc, Breda and Falman were the first to leave almost instantly since their belongings were elsewhere. Riza and Kain were the next to go a mere few seconds after the three men. Roy and Edward made sure that all of them were out first. In other circumstances officers of a higher rank were always the first to go, their position in the military being more great and valuable. Roy and Ed never believed in that, their top priority was to get everyone else out before themselves.

"You got everything?" The younger man nodded as they placed woollen hats over their heads and their thickest coats before quickly rushing out the door, only to be greeted by the sight of three officers coming down the corridor. Their eyes made contact and within a split second the two Amestrians were running. Shouts from the military dogs behind them telling them to stop and give up. The day The Flame and Fullmetal Alchemists would give up would be when hell froze over, both men never knew when to quit even in the brink of death. Bursting through the back exit door they quickly began to make work of the stairs, jumping two steps to the entire set. there weren't that many flights so they'd be outside in no time...or so they thought. A commotion on one of the floors below had alerted the two men that there were soldiers below them as well.

"Quickly follow them! They've gone out the window!"

Well at least Hawkeye and Fuery had got out, but the two generals were in a tough situation. The sound of the door they burst through merely moments before burst open once again, thundering against the wall and crying out as the hinges suffered more abuse. Below the sound of footsteps were getting ever so closer as more were climbing up the stairs. They had no other choice, Ed flung himself into the door just to their left, hoping that this floor could give the two men the exit they really needed right now. Compared to the creaky floorboards on their floor this one was carpeted, a much-needed relief that if they needed to sneak around they would not make a sound. The door to the other set of stairs was just ahead, turning the corner they stopped in their tracks, the Drachman soldiers thought of that too as four men guarded the very door they needed to get through. Roy and Ed turned to head back, halting almost immediatly as the soldiers that were originally on their floor blocked their other way of escape. So much for a carpet floor. They were trapped, not captured as of yet, but it wouldn't take long for that to become the reality. Seven against two, giving more space Roy and Ed could have taken these men on, alchemy or not, none of them had guns which was the only positive thing in this situation.

"Give yourselves up, you are completely surrounded." Both men darting their heads from one end of the corridor to the other, as the Drachman soldiers slowly walked towards them. "If you resist arrest we will use force."

Ed looked to Roy, there had to be a way out of this.

"Can I ask why you are after us? You can't do anything if you have no proof." Roy bellowed out to the man supposedly in charge.

"Oh we have proof alright, does the Black Panther ring any bells?"

"Shit.." Ed mumbled under his breath.

"You are wanted for assault on eight persons of the military and excessive damage to the public house."

A slow click caught the Flame's attention, where did it come from? It was close, but too quick to pinpoint.

"We were just in the wrong place at the wrong time! We left as soon as we saw trouble began starting!"

Another click, but a slightly louder one. This one caught Ed's attention as well. Someone was being nosey, which meant an open door, and possible escape, but which one.

"Not only did you leave your identifications at the scene there are multiple eye witnesses saying that you were associating with the five others we have a warrant for. Two of which were also fleeing from the same floor as yourselves."

"And you should know that just because we were there doesn't mean we weren't responsible. How about you investigate properly instead of picking on innocent people!"

The movement of a latch, the slow creak of a door turning on its hinges, a door has opened. Roy was looking at the room directly behind Ed, their only chance of a getaway. As soon as the older man began to move Ed did the same thing, bursting through the door without a care as to who was behind it and straight to the window. Roy slid it open before Ed took both their cases and lept out, luckily for them they were in one of the rooms right above the entrance, landing on the porch roof before sliding off. They didn't have time to boast and taunt as soldiers on the ground saw them. A soldier from the very room they had just leapt from calling out with the orders to chase them down and arrest them. Roy grabbed his case from Ed and the two men begun running once more.

No matter where they ran the soldiers weren't that far off. Things were getting desperate and the two of them were tiring, muscles straining, refusing to move. Chests heaving as the desire for oxygen become much greater. The two Amestrians were at peak physical condition, but running on very uneven cobbles and ice wasn't really their forte. Turning a corner Roy grabbed a strong hold of Ed's wrist, pulling the younger man with him into a small alcove to his right. Both men watching nervously as the soldiers right past them, the sound of boots on stone was becoming an oh too familiar sound in this country for the two Generals.  
As the footsteps faded Roy relaxed, resting his forehead on the cool stone in front of him taking deep, yet quick breaths to get oxygen back into his lungs and bloodstream. As soon as his heart calmed down to a respectable beat he inhaled deeply through his nose and exhaled through his mouth. The smell that came through was a smell the relaxed him. It was such a familiar smell...and then reality hit him, that was Ed's smell. He pulled back slightly to see the tanned skin of the younger man. He had him trapped against the wall, a protective stance, a shield, one arm either side of the younger man. He didn't intend to do that, he didn't even remember doing that, it was just a natural reaction, to protect the one you hold dear. Their lips were so close. The Flame looked over his features, tanned skin, the way his lips were parted as he inhaled, the way his chest heaved. He looked back to the teal eyes knowing that behind them were those beautiful golden orbs he'd seen many times. His chest became heavy and his heart raced once more. What was it about the Fullmetal Alchemist that made him feel this way? No woman had ever given him this strong urge of need and desire then what Edward was doing right now. At that moment he thought back to his house when he kissed Ed for the first time, it was so perfect the way their lips moved with each other, the feel of the blonde's fingers combing through his hair. But what was stopping him from taking those lips once again? Rules, the fabled red tape. A rule that was getting increasingly hard to follow the more he admired his younger subordinate.

"Come on, let's go before they come back." The brunette nodded and followed him back into the side streets.

Ed's heart was beating a mile a minute, the sheer tension between the two had reached something he never thought or ever felt before. He was so close, their lips almost touching. He almost lost control, wanting nothing more than their mouths to be joined once again in a passionate embrace. To feel the touch of Mustang's fingertips gliding down his spine. If this continued he'd go crazy, he desired the older man but since this assignment in Drachma his feelings had changed from wanting to be with him to needing to be with him. There was nothing more he wanted in life then to be with the general, walking side by side, eating together, sleeping together, working together. Well three of four wasn't bad and the sleeping part had occurred once, even though it wasn't what he hoped it would be, but it was better than nothing.

A large piece of paper attached to a wooden pillar suddenly caught the Fullmetal's eye, tapping his hand on Roy's arm to get his attention he walked to the telegraph pole and read the notice.

"Wanted for criminal damage and assault. James Sturtet and Kestar Myles. Both men around 5ft 8inch. Sturtet has blonde, mid head hair, blue eyes and spectacles. Myles has long dark brown hair, blue/green eyes and on one occasion sported tinted spectacles. If you know the whereabouts of these two men please inform the authorities immediatly. Do not approach. Also wanted for theft from numerous restaurants and shops. Reward will be negotiated upon capture - alive."

He looked at the sketches, they weren't a bad attempt, apart from making Roy look like a stick insect and himself something from the horror stories in Central Library. He ripped it off and folded it. Roy looked at him with furrowed brows of confusion, but the natural blonde smiled.

"It's a memento, come on Roy it's not everyday you see a poster asking for your capture..well not in a criminal way anyway."

Mustang visibly shivered in remembering a past fling. She was a nice girl, beautiful, but the more you knew about her the quicker you wanted to run for the hills. In the end the general 'broke her heart' even though they had only been seeing each other for five days. The man was wanting to shed his one night stand rumour and actually settle down, marry, maybe have children, but it only took one suffocating, clingy stalker of a woman to think otherwise. The result was that she couldn't take it and plastered posters all over central asking for the capture of Roy Mustang. What she would have done to him, if he was handed to her, he didn't dare think about.

"Thanks Ed, I wanted to forget about that for a reason."

They continued walking again, back onto the busy trading street. they weren't that far from the agreed meeting point and were beginning to relax when a voice called out.

"You there! Surrender peacefully!"

Roy and Ed quickly stopped in their tracks and tried to find where the voice came from. They didn't have to search long as four new soldiers began running towards them, both Amestrians spun on their heels and ran. What were the odds in a busy street that they'd be spotted? Diving back into the side streets they ran as fast as they could, in the end grateful that they did take a breather in that alley. Jumping over fences, knocking down wooden planks, trash cans, they did all they could to slow their pursuers down. As skilled as they may be at hand to hand combat they didn't want to risk taking them on by themselves. The soldiers from their first encounter back when they arrived were slower and out more of shape, these ones were highly trained and their fitness was on par with their own. They managed to put a reasonable gap between them, but it was not enough to shake them off. They reached a dead-end, or so you would think. Ed rushed in front and gave Roy a boost, giving him enough power to make the summit of a wall where he sat and waited for the brunette. The soldiers had just turned the corner, Ed took a run up and pushed himself up, grabbing onto Roy's waiting hand as the older man helped him up, just in time as one of the Drachman soldiers lunged for his ankle, grabbing the boot, but not strongly enough to keep hold. They weren't going to wait around to see if they were still going to be followed and ran down the single road which stretched for some distance.  
Yelling was heard behind them, Ed didn't even need to look behind to know that the chase was still on. His muscles were beginning to tighten again, he turned to Roy who had a pained expression on his face, both were in trouble if they didn't find some place to hide and fast. He pulled his superior into a vast maze of small streets and alleyways, praying that they wouldn't turn back on themselves and run into the people they were running from. He was startled when Roy grabbed his arm and spun him into a dead-end. There was another wall they could easily climb over..if they had the strength.

"Take off your coat"

Ed looked at his superior in utter confusion as the older man quickly removed his coat and hat.

"Ed, do as I say."

Ed knew not to get on the wrong side of Roy when his voice was that demanding and serious. He quickly took off his own coat and hat, handing them to Roy, who placed them into the nearest trash can. The pounding footsteps of the soldiers were coming nearer as Roy pushed him into a corner, completely covering his view of anything but himself. What was he doing? They were going to get caught if they didn't go now. Even more confusion flowed through his mind as Roy grabbed Ed's hands, placing them on his chest. Well there were better situations to admire Roy's physique, especially ones that didn't require running from capture, plus torture, before certain death.

"Don't move them." He hastily said as he ruffled his hair and took the tie out of Ed's mahogany locks, allowing the hair to fall gracefully over his shoulders.

"This way!" One of the Drachman followers called out only a few feet from them.

"Just go along with this.." Mustang said as he placed a hand on Ed's cheek.

It took all of a millisecond for Ed to realise Roy was kissing him. Soft and lingering kisses mixed with the heavy breathing, made the tender moment sound more passionate then what it really was.

"You there, two men came running this way.."

"Yeah." After parting just enough to give the soldier an answer Mustang slowly kissed Ed again, grazing his teeth along the brunette's bottom lip before pulling back "What of it?"

"Where did they go?"

Roy turned his head slightly, but not enough to show his face.

"The hell would I know, can't you see I'm a bit pre occupied at the moment?"

He turned back to Ed and proceeded to kiss him once more as his fingertips slowly drifted from the younger man's cheek to cup the back of his head, whilst Ed curled his fingers into the fabric of the Flame's shirt.

"Sir! That ladder, they must have gone over the wall."

"All right you two go over and look for them, I'll take the long way round. And you..." Referring to Roy "You see them you shall report it to the nearest soldier, understand? You also might want to take your woman some place else, not exactly romantic being in a back alley."

The only thing Roy replied was with a middle finger as he teased Ed's lip some more.

The sound of the ladder being positioned signalled it was almost time for the meeting of mouths to end. Was it wrong for Ed to want them to stay nearby so it wouldn't? Two pairs of feet climbing up and over before thudding on the ground the other side of the very wall Ed was pinned against, followed by all four soldiers running off was the signal that Roy's plot to lose them had been successful. Both men stopped their actions, faces only inches apart.

"We'd best get to the meeting place." Ed quietly said as he removed his hands from Roy's person, waiting for the older man to step aside since he was blocking his way.  
But Roy didn't move, instead he cupped the younger man's face with both hands before connecting their lips once more. There was more pressure then their decoy kiss, a need to be close. Ed tried to think as quickly and rationally as he could as to why Roy was doing this, but when he felt the older man's tongue glide against his bottom lip he gave in. He opened his mouth and allowed entrance to the leading muscle, letting it explore and intertwine with his own. Roy's hands glided separate ways, one slowly made its way down to the small of Ed's back, whilst the other circled around the natural blonde's head again to make sure they stayed in close quarters. Their lips hastily moved with each other, their tongues in a never-ending battle as their breathing became distorted and heavy. This also settled one of the many rumours that followed the Flame, that he was an incredible kisser, whoever started that one wasn't wrong, he could kiss that man all day and never get tired.  
With one last lingering kiss Roy slowly pulled away, giving both of them a chance to catch their breath, chests heaving, lips swollen. It gave the time to reflect on just what happened, Roy had kissed him, and on his own accord. It was what Fullmetal was waiting for, that Roy would make the first move to initiate the relationship.

"Come on, we'd best get going." The General turned and retrieved their things, quickly putting his coat on and taking his suitcase before turning the corner and proceeding to walk back down the narrow street.

Ed stared at the coat now occupying his hand before looking round the corner seeing his superior now a fair distance away. A strong case of déjà vu hit Fullmetal like he'd just been smacked in the face with his own automail. Just like the mansion he was about to leave when he was stopped. Just like the mansion he was unexpectedly kissed and just like the mansion the words he didn't want to hear came out of the older man's mouth. Bare in mind these words were better then the 'As much as I want this' quote' it still hit him like a tonne of bricks.

"Ed? come on we'd best not stay here any longer."

He'd been brushed off...again.

Fullmetal inhaled deeply before releasing the air in his lungs slowly before replying. "I'll go this way" Indicating another wall and taking the ladder that the soldiers left standing. Roy was walking back to him confused when Ed held his hand out to stop him. "They are looking for two people right? It's easier if we split and meet at the church."  
He didn't give his superior the time to reply as he scaled the ladder and lept over the wall. In truth he couldn't stand being near him. Falling for the same trick twice. He really thought Roy had turned his back on Amestrian law to finally be with him, more like the natural blonde had 'gullible' tattooed on his forehead. He wanted to punch something, he wanted to punch Roy, for the first time since the Promised day he regretted having a flesh arm instead of automail. There he stayed, he didn't know how much time had passed when he finally did start walking to the meeting point, but one thing was clear the Fullmetal Alchemist, he had to give up on Roy, he couldn't keep being used this way...


	16. Crumbled concrete, angered heart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for lack of updates these past couple of months, it's been insanely busy here. Hopefully in a few weeks I'll be back to posting more regularly. This chapter has been waiting to be uploaded for a while and I found a small bit of free time.

"So what do we do now? We have nowhere to stay."

"We could always find an inn that none of us have been to.." Fuery replied "There are plenty the other side of town."

Roy did think about the storm drain that him and Ed used for the first few days, as Riza and Fuery came up with ideas. But it was either search for a bigger corridor to rest in or squeeze up in the original place. Neither did honestly sound like a good idea, it was constantly freezing and the General himself wasn't keen on waking up at set intervals to keep the small fire burning again.

"No, staying at another place is too risky." Ed chimed in. "The fact that me and Mustang left a room which was supposedly in your names means you've been marked as well, not to mention you also fled from the scene."

It was only by sheer chance that they were able to escape. If it wasn't for Kain they would have been locked up and heavily interrogated by means of torture if they were pushed to it. Roy knew all about Interrogation in Drachma, it was brutal compared to Amestris. They used weapons in their schemes, opening old wounds physically, taking the pain threshold to the limit that even the strongest of people could crack. The people that do survive are probably left to die of blood loss or suffocation if they refuse to answer questions that were put to them. Roy couldn't remember the last time anyone was injured so badly during interrogation back in Amestris. It was at least when he was still in the military academy, but then it was only rumours. A lone Cretian soldier who just happened to cross the boarder accidentally. So many different versions were told concerning what happened to this man, each one more brutal than the previous.

Storm drain it is then...or maybe not... as three familiar bearded men came into view.

The four gathered looked to each other and then to the men as they came to halt beside them, each carrying their suitcase as well. All inhaling deeply to gather as much oxygen as they could.

All seven now meeting at the rendezvous point. The place itself was rather deserted, a fair distance from any of the busy districts. Roy stood instead of slouching on the disused fountain indicating the entrance to the church behind him. It was probably disrespectful doing something like that on a stone monument, but then again Ed was actually sitting on it.

"What happened?"

Breda held up his hand, silently asking his superior to wait a moment as he caught his breath before answering.

"We got back to our room and there was a knock on the door. A soldier was on the other side and asked to see our identification, because there were rogue criminals on the run and they were staying in rented accommodation. We showed them to him and he just let us get back to business. But Mus here - " pointing to Falman "- kept his ear to the door and heard said soldier talking to another."

It was now Falman's turn to continue the turn of events.

"They were discussing our names, which put me on high alert so I told the others to get ready to leave just in case, and in good time. There was another knock and I opened the door again. They asked to see Havoc once more before attempting to arrest him for the public house incident, harassing and us for harbouring a criminal..so we ran."

Their real identities had not been discovered and they were still together, it was a start. Now they were back at square one just after the incident only with more soldiers on the look out for them. The mission had to continue without a doubt, but without shelter it makes it much harder.

"There may be a place we can go.."

The others turned to look at Fullmetal as he jumped off the stone fountain. Without saying another word and taking his suitcase he just began to walk, it didn't take that long for the others to catch on and follow him, keeping a 360 vision around them. If a soldier saw them they would have to split...and fast.

Ed lead them through the twist and turns of the back streets memorizing the route from where hence he came after splitting with Roy. There were a few near misses when it came to soldiers, but hopefully enough time had passed since they had been chased that there wasn't still a huge man hunt going on. Them going in a group was risky, but less then going in their own smaller teams, they could at least put up a better fight. The buildings they past were empty and abandoned Ed thought back to when him and Roy split up. He only went that way to gather his thoughts on the most recent event that happened between him and his superior. He remembered looking at the buildings he passed. Some were rather tall others slightly smaller, all mixed. He looked into one of the smaller ones through the broken front window, it was empty, completely stripped bare of everything apart from the floor boards. A completely deserted area.

The brunette suddenly stopped, causing the others who weren't paying attention to use evasive action. Looking at the buildings more than where their feet were placing or the direction of movement would have lead to some either dangerous or hilarious consequences. Roy and Riza who stood either side of Ed looked to the building the young ex alchemists' eyes were focused on. A fairly tall building, a good four levels high. Like all the other buildings in the area it was completely desolate. Windows covered in mould, the wooden frames flaked and rotten so badly that even when Mustang gently placed his finger on the window ledge it came apart with such great ease. It didn't give the general a great first impression on the structure and it seems Ed caught onto this.

"I've already looked inside. Concrete floors, completely empty. A good place to situate ourselves is on the third floor. The windows around the back are still in one piece, but easily breakable. The only way up is through the staircase situated in the center of the building. Anyone attempting will have to open a rather loud and creaky door before they even begin to climb, and the echo in that place is pretty loud. Anyone on watch would be alerted immediatly and quickly alert the others to escape. From the windows are easy access to the roofs, yes some are made of corrugated metal, but some are flat and concrete, unless they have visible damage they should be fine to walk over."

The natural blonde had it all planned out, it explained why he arrived at the meeting point much later than Roy.

"Lead the way Fullmetal."

Entering the building Roy carefully surveyed each wall and ceiling. He had no doubts about his youngest subordinates observational skills, but it gave the general a sense of calm checking himself. A loud creak emitted from behind him, quickly spinning on his heels he turned to see Riza at the door which must have been to the start of the staircase. Ed looked at Roy, amused with his reaction to the sound. The general wouldn't admit it startled him, but he could tell just looking at the temporary brunette that he wouldn't believe him anyway. But it did the trick, it immediatly made the others stop what they were doing and focused all their attention to that one point. The door itself was a sheet of thick and heavy metal, Hawkeye released it causing it to slam with a considerable amount of force back into the frame. It was definitely a good natural alarm system. The general watched as the others tried. Each man, just like Hawkeye, had to use a considerable amount of strength to even make a slight creak out of the hinges. Using the shoulder instead of the hand or arm was the preferred method, allowing the user to place their entire body weight for easier access. Every time the door seemed to howl out in agony as the hinges turned with each push and release. After everyone had fun playing with the door, they ascended the small concrete steps - even small wasn't the correct term for what these were. These were definitely steps you couldn't just run up not only that the size of each one could only give room to the balls of your feet, but the concrete had been gradually chipped or crumbled away leaving it dangerous in places. In some cases one of the steps had completely broken - or was about to and if you fell the hand rail would be useless the thing was so flimsy it would cause an even more dangerous situation and fall with you if you happen to tumble down the central gap. The only plus would be that it makes a nice weapon if you needed something in haste.

Finally reaching the third floor Roy turned to see there were two doors either side of the staircase before the dangerous ledges continued upwards to the final floor.

"That door just leads to a single room which looks out over the front, windows are in a fairly miserable state."

Ed had done his seemingly telepathy thing again. Roy turned to notice the other door open, Ed keeping it open by leaning on it. The general never heard that door creak under the strain, it must be why Ed specifically chose this floor. He followed the direction the others must have gone, down the hall and into a room at the far end. Another door that didn't groan later and he found himself - and the others in a rather average sized room - well average for Roy that it was about half the size of his guest rooms back in the mansion, but more then enough for seven people to sit and sleep in comfortably. If they couldn't have a fire it was best that they stayed in the smallest room. He walked to the window - their escape route if anything does occur. Of course there was a slight draft coming from the frame since the buildings state of disrepair. Roy looked out over the darkening rooftops, Ed really had found a suitable place. From the window was an angled roof, easy enough to slide down to the much smaller buildings and no doubt a clear way to jump back to the ground and run and no doubt the front view would be a good advantage point - he'd have to check that out.

xXx

"So.. who's taking first watch?" Breda took a large spoonful of tinned fruit and hastily shoved it into his mouth.

Mustang took a moment to think in the likely case if they were attacked in the near future.

"If the group sleeps at twelve then each person will have a one hour shift. Falman, you take first watch then at one Fuery. Two Havoc, then Ed, myself, Hawkeye and Breda."

Back in Amestris any surprise raids occurred between three and five in the morning, it was a time where known occupants would be home and asleep. Breaking down the door screaming and shouting as they rushed the premises could cause anyone awakening from their slumber confusion and panic. He wanted the strongest of his unit on at these times with himself right in the middle. As much as he didn't believe Drachman military would be the same he wasn't going to take any chances. It was more of a better bet that since that military loves fighting so much they'd probably knock on the door, shoot aimlessly and ask questions later...if anyone had survived. Drachma had become a country obsessed with power, constantly demanding Amestris to had over land that was 'riotously theirs'. They wanted Amestris in an entirety, whether the whole reason his unit were there because the traitors were working for Drachman military or for their own reasons was left to remain in question, only by them getting down to the bottom and arresting those involved in the collapse of central command will answers be finally found.

Night had dawned on the team quickly. Each now had a makeshift bed of clothes, some of them using their suitcases as a makeshift pillow. Everyone else but the person on watch had gone to sleep. Roy did his best, but kept waking up feeling colder than he was before. He remained laying there listing to the heavy breathing, or in some case snoring of his colleagues, as he wrapped his coat around him to try and gather more warmth. He was used to sleeping on cold, hard concrete like what he and Ed did in the storm drain, but at least they had a fire. Thinking of Ed he turned on his side, just about able to see his silhouette slowly rising. Stretching with the odd groan of complaint he stood up and made his way out the door. Slowly opening it and slipping through before quietly replacing it back against the door frame on the other side. It was then the general realised it was the young man's turn to take watch as Havoc came back through, even through he couldn't properly see him the distinctive smell of stale cigarettes suddenly loomed in the air clearly verified his presence. The man walked past him and no doubt straight down onto his mound of clothes.  
There was no point him even attempting to go back to sleep, it was his shift in an hour, he might as well be alert by the time he relieves Ed of duty. He held his coat tightly and sat upright. A new snore mingled with the others indicating as soon as Havoc laid his head down he was immediatly in a deep sleep.

He couldn't stay still, rising from his sleeping place and stood to his feet. Trying to get some warmth into his toes as they had numbed in his boots he stumbled onto Ed's makeshift bed, noticing a very soft landing. Roy picked up whatever he fell on to realise it was Ed's coat. Why hadn't he taken it? Well since he was up he might as well make sure the younger man had it before he froze to death.  
Slowly stepping out into the corridor he carefully walked to the stairwell where the blonde should be. During the time Roy stopped at the lone window flipping his pocket watch open to reveal the time was actually 2.35am. Ed wasn't supposed to even be on duty yet, but was defiantly Havoc who returned. Gently knocking on the door before slowly entering he saw the young man sitting at the top of the stairs with his back leaning against the wall in nothing more then his thick pants and dress shirt.

"You mind telling me why you're here and Havoc isn't?" Roy whispered, but the echo made it loud enough for the ex alchemist to hear.

"Couldn't sleep." He basically replied.

Roy fully stepped in, slowly closing the door behind him. Taking Ed's folded coat from his forearm he gently placed the thick fabric over the younger man's shoulders as he leant forward to accept it. He took a seat next to his subordinate as Ed threaded his arms into the sleeves, buttoning the item up fully before resting back again.

"You mind telling me why you are here?"

"Couldn't sleep either, plus you left your coat."

They sat in silence, listening out for any unusual sound coming from the floors below. Roy had on several occasions glanced to Ed deep in thought. It was fairly dark in the stairwell, but a lone candle near the door was their only true source of light.

"Do I get no explanation?" Ed snapped Roy out of his trance looking at the flickering flame.

"For what?"

"For what happened not even twelve hours ago?"

Roy knew he meant about their coming together in the alley. "We needed to evade those soldiers quickly and it was the best option."

"Best option for what? For me, for you?" Ed could feel hid blood beginning to boil

"For both of us Ed. If we got caught- "

Excuse after excuse, Edward wasn't surprised. He didn't even let the older man finish before he quickly rose to his feet and left the older man out in the stairwell. Why couldn't he just be honest? They knew each other's feelings. If it was Havoc and Breda in that situation they would not have made out yet alone kissed. It wasn't a thought that Ed wanted to think about but they were the first names that came to mind. Roy knew what he was doing, he was sure about that, and when that happened he'd get lost in his desire for the older man. But he couldn't do it any more, it had to end.


	17. More than one door opens

For what was supposed to be only one hour of lost sleep whilst on watch turned to be the rest of the night. Edward couldn't sleep, not when he was so pissed off with his superior. Even when Roy returned from his shift he glared daggers right at the older man. He didn't know if Roy was even looking at him and to be honest he didn't even care, it wasn't like he could see him through the darkness. All these years desiring someone who clearly was only interested in him when he felt it was right, on his grounds, his needs.

Even during daylight he glared daggers at the man's back as they headed to their appointed areas in hope that he didn't get any sleep, when he returned from his extended watch after the natural blonde stormed off. Last night was definitely the end, he couldn't keep being used in this way. If Roy wanted that he could just use one the never ending line of women that were no doubt queuing at his house back home in Amestris, awaiting his return. He wouldn't be surprised if they were queueing from his front door all the way to the train station, heck with all the known conquests they'd be queueing up to the Drachman border. Maybe even camping on his front and back lawns ready to pounce as soon as a hair comes through the main entrance gate.

As much as he wanted to be with this man and as much as he wanted to wait for him, however long it took, the way Roy brushed him off every time they got close was getting irritating to the point of him wanting to punch the daylights out of him. So many side alleys he could push him into. He was known for his temper when he was younger and now it was going to rear it's ugly head once more, only sadly he didn't have his alchemy this time. Of course there were rules about what not to do to a superior officer, but he couldn't care less. A fist to the face would relieve some anger, sure it may cost him his title and profession if Roy pushed the Court Marshall, but it would be worth it. To ruin that pretty face.

He was still mentally cursing the older man when he heard someone talking. Of course they were in the busy trade district at the time, so many voices were heard, but this one was very distinctive. Not by the moderately pitched voice or how fast it projected, but by the clear failure at attempting a Drachman accent. It was clear this person was none of the ones that Ed observed in the undergrowth at the park yesterday, this voice was higher pitched and that other person didn't seem to care he was speaking in the accent of an enemy country. The still disguised golden orbs quickly darted from one person to another, trying to catch a glimpse of who the voice belonged to. He didn't even care that Roy was walking ahead whilst he stopped dead in his tracks to concentrate on finding the blatantly bad owner. It was then he saw a familiar face, a scrawny man with shaggy brown hair even though half of it was under a hat there was no mistaking it, Frazen Matlock. One of the men at the meeting point from the park. Walking with him was a man not much taller then Roy, broad shouldered, dark hair in a buzz cut.

Ed immediatly followed, he needed to see the other man's face. There was no way he was undercover, no one was stupid enough to speak like that, might as well carried a sign saying 'Hello! My name is XXX and I'm an Amestrian' above his head. The natural blonde followed them for some way through the twisting and turning paths. Sometimes the men would go back on themselves and quickly turn another direction after seeing a soldier or speaking with another person in a desolate area.

It seemed forever until they came to a stop at a house in one of the suburbs. Ed stayed hidden in the shadows, hugging the wall tightly as they quickly glanced to see if anyone was looking before hastily going through the front door. When the coast was clear Ed revealed himself once again and quickly dashed to the property. The front door was definitely not an option but he needed to know what was so important about this particular house. Maybe it wasn't anything at all, just an innocent residence that just happened to house one of their targets. If it wasn't for the fact they took forever to get here when even Ed knew you just needed to follow a certain road, and the crappy Drachman accent, the temporary brunette may have over looked.

There weren't that many people around, but Ed kept his senses on high. He could hear voices inside, someone was yelling but he couldn't make it out what exactly was being said. Quickly scanning the property he found a window on ground level. Cautiously gazing into what was the cellar of the house he saw multiple crates, some stacked high others just one next to another. He gently pressed his hand at the top of the glass originally accidentally, but when it began to rotate up his luck may just be improving. The gap to the floor was a reasonable size, he could easily slip through, and that's what he did. Feet first onto one of the crates he quickly made his way through, shutting the window, but not fully, landing on the tiled floor with the softest of thuds. Quickly making haste to the door he tried the handle to reveal it was locked. He softly placed his ear to the woodwork but was unable to hear any voices, maybe it was better if he just stuck around near the house?

"Damn it." He whispered to himself and turned to investigate the area when the sight of a figure of a man seated on one of the crates with his arms and legs crossed was scowling at him.

Ed flinched in fright at the sudden appearance of the man he never even heard enter the room. He clutched his chest as his heart felt like it was going to burst through his ribcage.

"Fucking hell can't you make yourself known like a normal person!" His voice very low, in anger.

"Well since you started heading off in a different direction than where you were supposed to be heading in, and ignoring me calling both your names I thought I'd best follow you to make sure you're not going to get yourself killed."

"I don't need a babysitter." He ignored the evident irritation in Mustang's voice, instead beginning to search through the crates

"And I don't need to lose one of my best men because he decided to stray from the mission he was given to be nosey."

Ed stopped rifling through a crate of food and turns to another wooden box.

"Ed..."

"Ed..." Saying the name twice clearly wasn't going to get the man who was blatantly ignoring him to respond.

The man in question headed back to his only exit in the room and climbed back up on to the crate.

"Where are you going?" Question once again falling on deaf ears.

Ed pushed the window only to find it didn't open, even using all of his strength the glass wouldn't budge. He could break it, but that goes against all the rules of Observation and stealth. He turned round, glaring at his superior before sarcastically clapping.

"Well done General Bastard, we are now officially stuck in here. Now if you want me to resume my original mission instead of straying away from the objective, being 'nosey', and getting myself killed, I suggest that you transmute that window or door so we can get out."

The sound of a door above slamming shut and loudly locked. Ed ducked down somewhat and looked back out the window to see Matlock and another person, which must have been the awfully bad accent man leave. It irritated the Elric no end, was that James? Was that their main target? He tried the window again in a strange hope that it would now magically open,but alas it was not to be. With an irritated sigh Ed admitted defeat against the window and jumped back down.

"How long are you going to act like this Ed? How long are you going to act like a stropping child"

If looks could kill right now Roy would have dropped dead on the floor in an instant. Only the Flame would dare wind up Fullmetal, but it seemed to be the only way that the natural blonde would respond to him.

"I didn't ask you to follow me!"

"Why are you being like this?"

"Like what?"

"You've avoided me all morning not to mention you storming off last night leaving me to do yours and my shift."

"You seriously that fucking clueless why I'm so pissed off? Every time something happens between us you disregard it as part of the mission, you brush me off like it was nothing!"

Ed was glad that the occupants had left the house so he could really let the older man know how upset he was with the whole situation.

"Ever since that day trapped under Central I have been nothing but honest with you. I haven't made a pass at you apart from that day. I know of your supposed feelings for me but I honestly don't know what the fuck you are doing."

Roy remained silent

"I don't mind the glances, I don't mind the occasional flirt, scenarios like when you were holding me in bed I can muster because nothing happened, but what happened yesterday is too much to ignore. We were in the clear and you pulled me back. You wrote it off like it was fucking nothing...again! How am I supposed to take that?! What do I actually mean to you Roy? Please tell me because at the moment I feel like someone who is just there when you fucking want it to be. Do I honestly mean anything to you at all or am I just like one of your women back in Amestris? The ones who you have nothing to do with when you've had your fill and got bored."

"No!"

Roy slowly stood from the crate and walked over to Edward who was defiant at standing his ground against his superior. It took all but a split second for his lips to be pressing against the younger man's with a sufficient amount of force. But the response wasn't what he had intended..

For a brief second, a millisecond, Ed had welcomed those lips before kneeing the older man in the groin. Roy bent down in pain, just the perfect height to Ed to a striking a blow on his cheek, sending the other man sprawling to the ground. That was so worth losing his state licence over.

"Stop fucking with me!"

The pain was strong, but Roy withstood placing a hand to the now incredibly tender area, getting slowly back to his feet.

"You mean everything..."

Ed clearly didn't hear the older man as he continued

"We agreed back in Amestris that this wouldn't go any further until the time is right. It isn't supposed to interfere with our mission. Yet from where I'm standing it clearly is. It's affecting me. "

"I nearly lost you.."

"My life has been on the line for years Roy, yours even more. We both have had many near death experiences. You don't think I never worried about you whenever you left your office?"

"When I saw you practically lifeless in that river for the first time in years I was scared. Scared I was going to lose someone who I truly care about. Lose the only person I could truly find happiness with."

"I'm not playing one of your pathetic mind games again! You're the man who follows the rules and obeys every order, you're not going to go back on it, you never do." Ed turned away and placed his attention on a single crate near the door, anything to avoid looking at the other man.

"I can't keep pretending any more, I can't follow a pact, I can't follow the military rule. I know we agreed to wait, but I can't wait for something that may take years."

"Are you hearing what's coming out of your mouth?" sliding the lid over halfway to take a good look "Maybe that window hit your head on the way-"

He stopped mid sentence and halted his rummaging through the wooden crate, releasing along breath that he didn't even know he had held. All previous talk had not been forgotten, but stopped when the major general pulled out a rifle from the depths of the crate. Roy rushed over and looked in seeing two more guns hiding away. The two men looked at each other and then to the ceiling as the sound of shuffling. They were not alone...

Ed quickly put the gun back in it's place, covering it just like he found it and placed the lid back on. They had no escape, their original exit was jammed shut and their only other means of escape would lead them straight to whoever was slowly coming down the stairs. Roy grabbed Ed's arm and dived behind the mound of crates right by the door as the sound of a key was placed in the lock and turned. The door was kicked forcefully, hitting the wall to the side of it, no doubt creating a handle size dent.

"Remind me, why are we doing this again?" One man shuffled in.

"Cause things are being pushed forward, unforeseen but not exactly unforeseen circumstances he said." Another replied.

"You mean he saw it but pretend he didn't see it?"

"Nah nah nah, he knew it was gonna happen, just not as sudden as this and not the people either."

"Right...okay...but why we moving this stuff here?"

"Cause he said to because of the not exactly unforeseen circumstances! I dunno ask him yourself!"

There was a dull thud, followed by a sigh from both men.

The smell of cigarette smoke began to fill the room as the two Drachmans were no doubt taking a break. Ed and Roy silently knelt at the side of the tower they were currently hiding behind and carefully peered round to look at the two men, who thankfully had their backs turned to them. Both were around Havoc's height and well built. One with slicked back dark hair and the other with a buzz cut, but details didn't matter, the two generals needed to get out and the unlocked door was the best and only option at this time.  
Not taking their chances the two Amestrians crept up behind the unknowing men and placed them into a choke hold. Fingers and nails clawed for a means to breathe again, but both Roy and Ed were too strong for them as they slowly collapsed, being lowered to the floor as soon as they were drifting out of conciousness before being completely out cold.

Making their only getaway Ed and Roy rushed up the wooden steps to another door. Slowly opening it ajar they looked into the room the other side. With the place seemingly deserted, apart from the two men laying on the cellar floor, the two Amestrians headed towards the front door.

They walked out just as if it was their own home and began to walk back to their original destination.

Unbeknownst to them someone was watching and had been watching for a while...


	18. Goodbye my love

Roy took a deep breath before he entered the room, preparing himself for the knowing onslaught of questions. After he and Ed escaped the house and parted ways, once more to resume their original assignments, he could feel the area under his left eye begin to swell. Luckily the patches of snow that were dotted around on the untrodden ground allowed the process to be slowed somewhat, but not entirely. How grateful he was that Ed didn't have his Automail arm any more or things would have been much, much worse.

Slowly turning the handle and opening the door he was instantly greeted by Jean, who no doubt was heading elsewhere in the building to have a much desired smoke.

"Geez Roy, what happened to you?" Instantly grabbing his superior's jaw, turning his head to get a better view of the rather impressive bruise that had formed on the man's cheek since he last saw him. That small outburst grabbed everyone else's attention, all eyes were now on him.

"Now I'm guessing.." The unlucky in love man continued "...you either fell on some ice, walked into a door or actually got into a fight where someone was finally able to land a blow on you."

Roy shooed the hand away "I was saving a damsel in distress."

Havoc stared at him in disbelief "After all the grief you gave me about that girl back when we first got here you go and chat up a girl. What happened? She was with another guy and it kicked off?"

"I didn't attempt to take her on a date or sleep with her Jean, she was being harassed. I helped her, end of story."

Havoc was about to continue protesting, pushing his superior's buttons when Breda intervened."You joining sir?" Indicating to the game in front of them. Yes the fact that someone was actually able to land a blow on the great Roy Mustang, because of a woman, was something that hadn't been seen in years. But Breda was going to spare his colleague and friend from more trouble than what he was already in with their commanding officer. Besides it was clear that the General didn't want that conversation to go any further for whatever reason and they had no reason to doubt him.

Jean stepped to the side allowing Mustang to fully walk into the room to take a seat at the makeshift area, which consisted a seat of clothes and a suitcase for the table. He looked over to Ed who was seated beside him. Their eyes met for a second before the younger man glanced at his handiwork. The General didn't exactly know how bad it looked, but by the way everyone was looking at him it must be pretty distinctive.  
Obviously he had to lie, he couldn't say 'Sorry, I forcibly kissed Edward whilst we were trapped in the basement of a house, because you know that I have strong feelings for him and couldn't keep it in any longer. He gave me a very strong right hook and this is the result.'

Roy picked up his dealt cards and examined them before the game began.

"Ed was just telling us about that house with the dodgy accent guy." Breda broke the awkward silence.

"I didn't hear him, I just noticed Ed wasn't walking the way he was supposed to." Placing a card on the discard pile and picking another one up "So I followed him."

He carefully listened as Ed finished his summary of what happened.

"Was it just the two guns you found?"

Roy turned to Riza "We only got a proper look into one crate before we were disturbed. Ed had searched a couple of others prior, but didn't find anything."

"They were bringing another crate in, but it was too risky to stick around. We didn't know how many more were scheduled to be left in there or how many people would turn up." Ed turns to look at Roy "Could be worth putting that house on observation as well?" The older man nodded as the Major General turned to Hawkeye "You questioned us about the guns, were you expecting more?"

"I was hoping for some explosives." If she didn't have everyone's full attention she had now. "I heard three men over talking in the restaurant, one of them was Matlock, saying the plan had been pushed forward due to unforeseen circumstances that weren't mentioned."

"That's what those two men in the basement said as well, but no details were mentioned, mind you they didn't have a clue either."

"You think they are going to attack Amestris again?" Fuery put a card down on the 'table' asking the question that was on everyone's mind.

"I wouldn't put it past them." The only problem was at that moment in time it was the only information they could go on. Roy didn't like it, but it was better than no information at all.

"You think Matlock is the man in charge?" Fuery questioned again before Ed quickly responded.

"Whether he is, one of our original targets, or someone completely different that we don't know at the moment. Matlock is definitely someone to keep a close eye on, he does seem to be the most active member of the entire group."

xXx

Fourteen year old Edward Elric would have celebrated and given him a high five for punching the General in the face, marking it for all to see, yet alone a knee to the groin. Probably curse him for not using the automail limb instead of his flesh leg and tell him to do it again and again to make up for lost time. He sighed, back then when it was just a crush and the collateral was just a means of attention.  
Ed leant his head against the cold concrete wall looking to the crumbling stairs below him.

His trip down memory lane stopped as a light tapping sounded from the door behind him, before the latch clicked open. Fullmetal didn't even need to turn his head to know who it was. Did he come to apologise for his actions? Very unlikely. In the the years Ed had worked under The Flame Alchemist he could count the number of times an apology rang out from that mouth on one hand.  
He could hear every step the older man took before the space right next to him was claimed as Roy sat along with him on the stairs. As tempting as it was to stand and walk away Ed remained in the same place, this was his shift. If anyone has to leave it'll be the man next to him.

"I'm going to have to go talk to Henry and see what's got them so riled up." Roy suddenly spoke to break the silence between the two men.

"What makes you think he knows more than us? Didn't he say he was working on a completely different case?"

"It's worth a try though, he must have heard something because at this rate we are running out of time before they attack again."

Ed wasn't going to bother asking if he was going to go with him to see the undercover operative, there was no need. He may have been scheduled to go with Roy the first time, but certain circumstances stopped him. Mustang didn't need someone to hold his hand whilst talking to an undercover investigator, besides the less people the better. During the fifteen minutes he was alone when Havoc left he thought long and hard about the man now high on their radar. Matlock was definitely a key figure in all this. He also needed to find out who that latecomer in the park was, what is their role? What was Matlock's role? So many different thoughts, questions he couldn't find the answers to at this moment in time. Time, what they were beginning to run out of, just like Roy said.  
They could send warning back to Amestris but without details of what was going to happen, when it was going to happen and where it was going to happen there was not a lot that could be done. There was no way Grumman would put Amestris on lock down over something that might happen. The most he'd do was up security at each command center and other key areas. They needed clear and definitive proof that an attack was imminent.

"I am serious Ed."

"I never said you weren't." His eyes still looking down the stairwell.

"I meant about you." Ed, for the first time since Roy walked through that door, looked over to him. "I don't want to wait years for us to happen."

Ed stared at him. So what he heard was right, Roy didn't gain a concussion from the window, or his fist, before he said those words.  
Roy Mustang was a notorious ladies man, only interested in sex. As soon as he was done he would not see that individual again. How does he know that wouldn't happen to him? How does he know that as soon as they had finished rolling around in the sack that he'd be thrown to the disused pile like all the others? So many questions going around in his head. Why was he questioning everything about Roy now? Why couldn't he have gone through all of this when it was just a crush on the older man, and not years down the line when those feelings turned into something much, much stronger?

Roy moved to kneel on the steps in front of the blonde. He was rather concerned when all he got silence from the younger officer, it grew on the worry that he felt as soon as Ed punched him earlier in the day. Ed wasn't someone who'd lash out at people like that, yet alone someone on his side of the law. There was a feeling deep in his gut that he was losing Ed and it was showing in the younger man's face. As soon as Ed kissed him in the ruins of Central he'd wanted to be with him, he even made sure of that when he kissed him in the mansion. He couldn't pin point exactly when he started to accumulate feelings for the major general, but he never rejected them, in honesty he craved them.

"I've never been so serious in my entire life."

Ed's eyes connected to the general two steps lower from where he was seated.

"I am willing to put my career on the line for you. I've never felt about anyone as what I do for you now."

Ed needed to know the answer to the question he's been trying to get a reply from the whole time.

"Then tell me Roy, back in the alley yesterday yes we kissed as a ploy to shake off the guards, we were in the clear and able to meet everyone at the rendezvous point. When we pulled apart, I was going to get our belongings, but you pulled me back and started kissing me again. Why?"

"Because I need to." Roy didn't even hesitate with the true answer. "I needed to show you, just how much I wanted us."

"And you couldn't just tell me that because..." Roy looked down and remained silent "We've already been through this when we were trapped and then in the mansion. We knew how the other felt. I'm not like the others who you just kiss and they fall into bed with you."

"I want this to be more."

"Yeah, you clearly stated that when you fobbed me off with excuses. Your inexperience in having a proper relationship clearly shows."

"Because I've never had an actual relationship. I've never found that one person who I want to spend more than one night with." He places a hand to rest on Ed's "But now I have found that person."

Ed's features remained expressionless as his eyes remained fixed on the man's a few steps below him.

"The man in front of me is the person I truly want to be with. Every time we were alone I had to stop myself from holding you, touching you, but on those occasions I couldn't help myself and I hurt you." He pointed to the result of Ed's anger "I deserved this and deserve so much more for what I have put you through since this whole case began."

Seeing this side of Roy Mustang was a new thing for Ed. Roy Mustang profusely apologising. Yes he'd seen the older man apologising to a commanding officer, but nothing on this level. He was practically pleading for forgiveness.

Ed let his superior's words sink in before he finally spoke. "I punched you for a very good reason, because of your assholish excuses. For leading me on thinking we had something to look forward to." He took a deep breath "Right here, right now Roy I want you to give me a straight answer."

The older man nodded.

"Rule states that officers and members of enlisted ranks are strictly prohibited from personally associating outside of their professional duties and orders. Are you going against this rule? Are you putting your rank and military career at risk to be in a relationship with me?"

"Yes."

"If we get caught you'd lose your right to Führer-ship, court marshalled and even be disgraced from the military."

"It is a risk I'll willingly take. "

Ed reached into his pocket and pulled out his pocket watch, the dials signalling that his shift had come to an end. "I'd best wake Major Hawkeye."

Roy reluctantly removed his hand from the older Elric's as he stood to leave. He wasn't going to press him for an answer, after all that's happened between the two of them he knew Ed needed time to think it over. He's said what needed to be said to give him peace of mind, it was now left to the younger man to determine where they go from here. Opening the door he watched as Ed paused for a moment to look back at him before heading down the darkened corridor.

xXx

"Priorities have changed since Ed found a new weapons storage. Havoc and Breda I want you two to keep a close eye on the park since I need Fullmetal to keep an eye on the newest building. He will get you up to speed on his findings and lookout points." Pulling the map out he pointed out an area and continued "Fuery I want you to observe the area in between the main house and this new one, keep a look out for anyone under our descriptions either if they are talking to someone or carrying suspicious items be it crates or something else. There is a chance they may not even go to this secondary house or vice versa, I need to know if there are any other places. Hawkeye, Falman I want you two to keep an eye on our original target house, there hasn't been an incredible amount of activity coming out of it, but if what we are hearing is true things will start getting a lot more active and no doubt mistakes will be made. As for me I'll pay a visit to the informant to find out what is happening and why. Does everyone know what they are doing?" This eyes looked around the circle to each person nodding in acceptance. "When you're ready you can go."

Roy gave Henry's notes the last check through as the other members of his unit slowly filed out the door as information was exchanged and code signals were repeated between the new partnerships. The General wasn't going to let this moment go to waste, he needed eyes and ears at every possible area, it was a breakthrough they needed.  
He had many questions to ask the informant and had to make sure that he wasn't repeating any of the information that was already provided. Crossing off the marked resturants and bars he circled the new area of interest, needing to keep everything up to date before he took it. Circling certain names and descriptions of people they have come across, he wasn't leaving anything out. It may have taken him ten to fifteen minutes to finally be happy with everything, but he'd rather be well prepared. Neatly piling the papers back into the folders and placing the items in his satchel he stood to leave finally noticing a certain younger man leaning with his foot against the wall.

"Have you been there the whole time?"

"Of course. You, concentrating and paperwork don't really mix well. I Had to make sure I wasn't dreaming."

Roy walked up to him and chuckled "I'd be worried if me doing paperwork was all you dreamt about.."

Ed pushed himself off the wall and smirked before heading out the door. Roy swiftly followed the younger man through the corridor and down the neck braking steps. They were definitely getting worse as the days pass. The smirk was a positive sign, but he couldn't dwell on it. The mission was first, that was always agreed. Besides Roy wasn't going to get ahead of himself in case he did something stupid again that would make Ed lash out once more. He had his say, that was all he could do.  
It was agreed when they were exchanging information that all but Roy would need to head to their destinations at separate intervals. Now was not the time for people to start suspecting they were associated with each other, especially when they finally got a strong lead. So when they made their way outside Ed stopped with the remaining two officers as his superior walked on.

Walking up to his previous observation at the main house Mustang noticed Falman and Hawkeye on separate sides of the street, a good distance from each other. Riza not too far from one of the spots where he'd place himself near the card trick fraudster. But something was amiss, namely that very man wasn't there. Could it have been that we was moved on to another location by the military or the occupants of said house? There was even a chance he could have been threatened or even killed if he had noticed strange goings on with people coming to or from the house. Was it something to ask Henry about? Could be, but then how would he know? He was just a member of the general public trying to make some money.  
Walking closer to Falman he caught sight of a person just to the side of him, Henry. Eye contact was quickly made before the other man began leading the way back to the house he had previously briefed the General in. Roy quickly glanced around to make sure no one was watching before following the man through the maze of side streets. Walking back up to the familiar small building he entered in through the unlocked back door whilst Henry did the front, both men bolting the doors as soon as they entered before coming together in the room with the lowly table and chairs.

The man who was practically a nervous wreck when he first met him was now beaming with confidence. Walking over to the curtains to draw them shut before lighting up a cigarette and taking a seat opposite the Flame to watch the man take out the folders, which were originally given to him along with his extra notes concerning everyone's observations.

"I see someone's been busy." Shaking his hand with the hand of the man opposite him "Let's get down to business, what do you want to know?"

Roy unfolded the map, allowing time for the undercover investigator to properly the markings. "Sadly we didn't find anything at these bars and the restaurants only turned up one bit of information. One person's name kept coming up and the main of our visuals were him Frazen Matlock."

"Even though he doesn't look it he is one nasty piece of work, don't ever be stuck in a room with him. He may not look much, but the power he holds over some people is great. He's the most active on the street, obviously from your observations you've gathered that much. But being the errand boy has it's advantages, makes people think that you're just a lowly soldier. In reality he is one of the big guns. Drachman through and through, hates Amestris and everything to do with it, but is always willing to recruit ex Amestrians to the cause. He gets the information he needs and if they are skilled enough they work for him. I would go so far to say that he is the leader of this group."

"Fullmetal and I followed him and another man to a house." Pointing to the newly circled building on the map "We investigated the basement to find crates with weapons and more crates were being dropped off. The two men we knocked out were saying that things were being pushed forward due to unforeseen circumstances. Do you have any idea what they meant?"

He looked up to see Henry's face frozen at the spot his finger still pressed against. Was that shock or fear in his eyes?

"You... went here?" Suddenly the confidence faded in the man's features.

"Yes"

"Two of y-you."

"That's what I said." He watched as Henry took a deep breath to calm his nerves.

"Since the death of Byfield the whole group has upped their game, needing to take out more Amestrian structures before more get knocked off. So much so that they are concerned they are stocking up with firearms from the black market. But that's not your main worry right now. They've seen you, you and Edward. One of them saw you leave that very building."

There was a gentle knock at the front door which startled both men to keeping quiet as the knocking started again.

"Vic."

Both men looked to each other. Henry put a finger on his lips as he slowly raised from his chair and crept towards the window. Peeking though the tiniest of gaps he looked outside and quickly ducked back. The fear in his eyes clear as day. He quickly rushed back to Roy.

"You have to go, we'll have to continue this another time. As soon as I open the front door you sneak out the back."

"I know you're in there Vic, and if you're not going to answer the door I'll kick it in myself."

Roy nodded as both men quickly placed all paperwork back into the satchel, before Henry went to open the front door. As soon as Roy heard the conversation begin with the unexpected visitor he quietly and slowly unbolted the back door to make his escape.  
The next thing he knew he was face first on the floor, disorientated. The pain that was shooting through his nose was enough to know he'd been punched in the face. Raising his hand his fingertips touched the warm crimson liquid that was steadily dripping from his face to the wooden floor below. Just as he was about to push himself up to face the perpetrator his arms were taken out from under him and forced behind his back. Arms, wrists and even hands were tied before he was hauled back to his feet and pushed into the front room. There, along with a rather petrified looking Henry, were three other people. Two Roy didn't recognise, but the third he was beginning to know like the back of his hand - Frazen Matlock.

His eyes locked onto Roy before walking up to him. Taking a good look at his features, turning the man's head from side to side before profile. Roy was starting to suspect the worst, the way his hands were bound were so his palms were facing outwards, not inwards like you'd expect. Did they know who he really was? Did they know he was the Flame Alchemist who only needs to clap to perform Alchemy?

"Goes by the description." He muttered before turning his attentions back to Henry. "Care to say why this guy, who was seen leaving the other building, is in your house Vic?"

Henry looked over to the bloodied general, his entire being was shaking "H-he was threat-threatening me." With those words the man's throat was grabbed.

Roy's eyes lit up in amazement, was the Amestrian undercover investigator selling him out, a general, to save his own skin?

"Look in his bag!" His voice got higher and more pleading as the grip tightened around his neck.

Roy's satchel was thrown to the ringleader by whomever was behind him. Matlock grabbed the files and aimlessly threw the bag to the floor. There was an eerie silence as the man quickly scanned page after page, throwing each sheet to the floor when he was done.  
He looked to Roy, inhaling deeply to remain calm before reaching into his coat pocket and pulling out a flip knife.

"You've been following me." Pointing the blade at Roy before pointing it at the now scattered files on the floor "How did you get all this information?"

Roy stayed silent, but it didn't stop Henry.

"He b-blackmailed Harrison B-Byfield."

"What do you mean blackmailed?" He grabbed Henry by the throat once more.

"Byfield was an Amestrian undercover, sent here by Bradley. He was going to expose him if he didn't get what he wanted, and when he did he killed him and pushed him into the river along with Kirk and Warren. I saw it happen! It's why he is here, trying to get more information! He was just about to kill me when you came!"

Roy couldn't believe what he was hearing Henry Wheelen was supposed to be his undercover contact, to help bring the people responsible for the attack on central to justice and bring down the whole group behind it. Yet here he was fabricating events to save his own skin. Who's side is he really on? Because he had received relevant information on certain members of this resistance and their meeting places, but ratting on the next Führer of Amestris. He was helping Amestris but then not helping Amestris by what he was doing now. Was this all a ploy to make sure Roy's life was spared in hope that he could get him away safely?

Matlock went over and picked up a couple of the papers carefully rereading the contents this time instead of a quick scan.

"Meeting places... detailed descriptions... names..." He looked up to Roy. "You've really done your homework. My every move, you've clearly been waiting for the right time to take me down." He got right up in Roy's face, placing the blade to the man's throat.

For Roy he didn't show fear on his face, but inside his heart was beating fast. Of all the times he even thought how he would go, being ratted out by your own countryman with a knife to your throat wasn't one of them. What would happen to the rest of the unit? How would they even know he was dead? Would Henry contact them as well? After all he is the only one who knew Fullmetal was here as well.

"Sorry to disappoint you, I don't go down that easy. Isn't that right Vic?" His head turned to look behind him "Or should I call you Henry?"

The blade was relieved from Roy's skin, much to his surprise, as all eyes were once again directed to the confused and cowering man the other side of the room.

"W-w-w-what?" Henry looked just as shocked as everyone else.

"For someone who's supposed to be Amestris Intelligence you are pretty stupid aren't you? You didn't think I wouldn't find out about your meetings, not only with James here, but the others as well. Francis, Alex and Byfield" He chuckled and shook his head before his features turned serious again "I mean Derek Hachmar don't I Henry?" He bent down picking up certain pieces of paper. "You don't think I'd also recognise your own handwriting?" Throwing the notes in his face.

"I don't know what you're talking about!" Henry clearly pleading innocence no matter how pathetic he suddenly looked "Like I said he was going to kill me! I had to write that down! I-I was going to come straight to you after he left, tell you everything."

"Oh I think you do know what I'm talking about" Shoving the other man hard into the wall "I've known since the start what you are." Plunging the knife deep into his chest "A traitor." Before slowly turning the blade ninety degrees making sure the man felt excruciating pain before pulling it out allowing the stream of crimson liquid to quickly be absorbed by the man's clothing. "A pathetic traitor."

"Y-y-you're no b-better..." Taking a strangled gasp.

Roy watched in disbelief as his informant fell to his knees clutching at his chest in an attempt to stem the blood-flow, but it was pointless.

Matlock knelt beside him and laughed deeply. "I don't get people to do my jobs for me, I go out there on foot and do them myself. Unlike you I am no traitor, I am loyal to the cause, and will take out scum like you who go against it."

Henry collapsed to the floor, everyone staying silent as his body stilled.

Matlock looked down to the now deceased Henry Wheelan laying in a pool of blood. "Deacon, Kurt, get rid of that body. I don't want to see anything more of that useless excuse of a human being. Throw him in the river, burn his corpse I don't care just don't give him a burial in soil. Scum like him don't deserve it." He now looked back to the bound general "As for this one me and Guy will deal with him. We'll see what he knows before I decide what to do."

One of the two men grabbed Henry by the legs and dragged him away. Roy was thankful in a way that they were in such a secluded area, no member of the public should see something harrowing like that. They all watched as the body was taken from the building leaving a blood trail in it's wake.

"Guy, bolt and lock the doors, I don't want to be disturbed." His now angered eyes glared towards the Amestrian General.

The man who was helping to restrain Roy suddenly released him and calmly walked to the front door. In most cases this would have been the General's chance to escape, only in this situation his arms were completely disabled. Sure he could try and shoulder barge the back door and hope not to fall over when or if it collapses under him. Other options were that he could disarm Matlock and take him hostage, but he needed hands and arms for that. Why were his arms bound like this? He'd never seen this restraint before. Could they know he was an Alchemist? No...unless Henry told them.

The other man returned and for the first time Roy was able to see his face. He swore to himself as the person was clearly well known to him, well known as in he'd stood near him most days. It explains why he wasn't in the usual location when he walked past a short while ago, Guy was the street card trickster. All this time whilst Roy was watching the target house he was watching him.

Guy then proceeded back to Mustang bringing him further into the room, not far from the puddle of blood that still remained. He watched as Matlock began to carefully wipe his blade on the curtain, disposing of any last reminder of Henry from his property.

"Now since I don't have a great deal of patience you are going to tell us what you know and you are going to tell us now." Matlock turned around and leant on the wall.

"You've seen what I know."

He laughed. "Are you forgetting I'm the one in charge here, you really want to end up like Henry? If you tell me everything you know regarding Henry and why you are here then I may let you go depending how useful your information is. You're Amestrian, I bet in that head of yours is a tonne of information we do not know. Even if you came here to seek refuge the fact that you have been talking to Henry doesn't put you in my good books."

Roy didn't reply, there was no need to explain himself. When you are inducted into the military you swear your allegiance and loyalty under oath. Even though some people betrayed that oath Roy wasn't going to be one of them.

Matlock walked up to him, invading Roy's personal space. "TELL ME! TELL ME WHAT YOU KNOW AND YOUR LIFE SHALL BE SPARED!"

Roy stared straight ahead.

"If you want to die then so be it."

As the knife was placed once more onto his throat he didn't regret his choice. Amestris is his home and he was going to protect it. He had every belief that his unit will pull through and succeed in the assignment with or without him. This only regret was not getting together with Ed sooner, not to feel those lips on his once more. If only he left his law abiding ego back in Amestris.  
Roy looked to his executioner smiling. He hadn't won, Drachma hadn't won and they never would win.

"Any last words?" As the blade pressed harder into his skin.

The General stood tall, took a deep breath before spitting his own blood at Matlock

"Long live Amestris." His last words as the blade penetrated his flesh.


	19. Where are you?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the wait. I changed and re wrote this chapter several times and am still not completely happy with it, but this is the best I can do at this moment in time. ( Blame my job for working me to the ground )   
> I just hope I don't disappoint.

He had been there a good few hours now, and the numbers were still adding up. Ten crates had gone into the house and four came back out. The same four people carrying the crates all the while, two possibly the ones him and Roy knocked out, but he couldn't be sure. To anyone else it looked like they were just moving in, taking other items such as lamps and chairs inside, the perfect cover up for what was actually in each of those containers. He turned back round the corner and took out his pocket watch, clicking it open and staring at such a plain designed clock face.  
It wasn't long until the shift ended and he could return back to the others, back to Roy. After hearing the older man's words he definitely needed time for it to sink in. He'd risk his career for the sake of being with him. The sincerity and emotion in his voice, with no flicker of doubt in his eyes. The natural blonde smiled, he'd finally got him, all those years of yearning for him and now Roy Mustang was wanting to be his. As much as it was tempting to make him wait for his answer there was no way he could do that, not this time. As soon as they had a moment alone that was when he was going to tell him.

"Can I help you?"

A friendly voice suddenly sprang out of nowhere and scared Ed half to death, causing the ex alchemist to curse, and place a hand on his chest to calm his rapidly beating heart. He took several deep breaths to regain his composure, before finally looking to see who the culprit was. Sadly who he hoped it was and who it was in reality were completely at the opposite ends of the spectrum.

Frazen Matlock wasn't towering over him, just being that slightly bit taller, but the stance with his arm leaning against the side of the house and his face inches from Ed's was more than intimidating. Ed had expected to see the Drachman at some point today, just not next to him and questioning his presence. What could he say? He didn't expect this to happen.

"I'll ask again...Can. I. Help. You?" A complete change of tone from the first time he asked the question. Instead of friendly and polite curiosity it was now impatient, almost growling, in demand.

"I'm waiting for my date." The first thing Ed could think of, putting on his best Drachman accent. "You know what they are like with their make up and everything." He was quite proud of how his accent came out. This was the first time he actually needed to use it. Yes it wasn't perfect, but easily passable.

Without saying a word, and without changing his stance towards Ed, Frazen's hand went immediatly to the pocket watch still sitting in Fullmetal's hand. Taking the device his eyes finally unstuck from Ed's and glanced down at the casing before he clicked it open to look at the dials. He stared at the object as the second hand ticked it's merry way around the face. As soon as a clear minute went by the casing was immediatly snapped shut for the exterior to be entirely examined. He looked close, running his fingertips over the raised design, which Ed never paid attention to. If it wasn't the Amestrian State Military Crest then he didn't care, it could have been a picture of someone's cat for all he knew. As long as it didn't link him to Amestris he was safe.

The Drachman nodded in appreciation and dangled the time piece by the chain in front of Ed's face, slowly lowering it into the younger man's hand. "Twenty-three minutes past four, bit of a strange time to meet a date, mind you I can understand weird timings. This area isn't safe for a woman, yet alone anyone, at night."

He reached into his own pocket and pulled out a wooden implement. There was a click before something flew onto the Amestrian's face. Ed went straight for his pocket to pull out a handkerchief, something he thought he'd actually never use during his time here. He could feel the substance slowly running down the side of his face. Wiping the area he looked down at the pure white cloth in his hand to see that it was now stained red. Blood? His eyes slowly landed back to the item in Matlock's hand, a flip knife. He focused to the blade. What usually is a silver metallic sheen was instead covered in a layer of liquid crimson.  
Any civilian would have run to the hills by now, absolutly petrified by the sight.  
Who's blood was this? Where was he before he came here? No doubt another body thrown into that freezing river, it seemed to be the norm that the rebels round here did.

"Oh silly me, I thought I'd wiped this clean." Snatching the cloth from Ed's hand he polished the blade with great care before handing the soiled rag back to him. Now holding up to what light was around to take his time to inspect the sharp knife of any remaining stains or marks.  
"Back to what I was saying.." Matlock continued, replacing the blade back into it's handle casing "..This area isn't safe, things happen around here.." Before he flips the blade back out again causing Ed's face to get splashed once again with any excess blood still residing in the handle. "...things civilians aren't supposed to see." Back into the handle and gave him a firm pat on Elric's shoulder "Good luck with your date.."

And with another flick of his knife he turned and proceeded into the house. For what was a short meeting Ed learnt a lot about him, and none of it good. The definition he would put under the Drachman's picture instead of possibly dangerous was now close enough to psychopath. If he'd lick the blade with the blood on it he'd be the full package of psychopath. Ed looked to the sky to calm his nerves, sure he'd come across some insane and intimidating people on his travels with the State Military, but now he might have found a new champion. New questions arose, seeming with no proper meaning. What was the facination with the pocket watch? What was the reason by on purposely flicking crimson coated the knife out to him? Just a general warning or was it something with more meaning?

As the snow began to fall it was more then a better time to head back to the others. Learn what they found out on their observations and listen to the new information that Roy would have brought back from his meeting with Henry. He hoped the older man would come back with all the answers they needed for a swift and abrupt end to this assignment before even more people get injured or killed.

Using the last clean piece of his handkerchief he wiped his face once again and threw the cloth into the nearest trash pile. There was no way he was going to keep that.

xXx

Ed opened his pocket watch for the umpteenth time since they re grouped. Three hours and Roy still wasn't back yet. It had been nearly ten hours since he last saw him, it wouldn't usually bother Ed, but Roy was always punctual to whatever meetings he attended. He knew they all reconvened at five in the evening, after all he was the one that suggested it, not to mention he had a pocket watch. The natural blonde looked out the only available window. Since he had returned to the others the snow had gradually got worse and worse till a full blizzard had descended onto the streets of Central Drachma. No meeting lasts nine/ten hours. They weren't too fussed that the commanding officer hadn't come back at five with Ed taking down notes as everyone recalled the days activity, something Roy would have done had he been there. But as the snow continued to fall harder throughout the evening the Flame Alchemist became the only topic to think and talk about.

Should they go look for him?

The question played on everyone's mind. All of the unit were close to Roy, years of loyalty to the man showed with serious concern about his well being. It was Ed's choice what they did, with Roy absent he was now the commanding officer. Everyone looking for him was probably the best idea, if they had a form of communicating with each other. If one found him how would everyone else know? Going in a group was another idea, but even if one person from the so called 'resistance' saw them all together then their entire cover and mission was blown.  
What could he do? He had to go look for him, but didn't have time on his side, the weather was getting worse the longer he questioned himself.

"What do you think sir?" Fuery lifted the silence that filtered through the room.

"I don't even know where he'd be, the whole of central Drachma would need to be searched.." Ed thought back to this morning. Roy had a good three layers of clothing on, so he was protected from the cold up to a point. Thick black boots reminiscent of the ones he wears with his military uniform, beige satchel, no hat or scarf, but he at least had a hood on his coat.

"I have a rough idea of which way he went." Falman spoke out "He past me on the way to this meeting. I know the general direction, but he may have made his way back along a different route then coming back the way he went."

"He may have just taken shelter to wait for the weather to clear up, but I'm not just going to stand here waiting. Falman, you and I will search the area you last saw him. Even if it's a small hope that we find him I'd take the chance. I want the rest of you to wait here." He hurriedly went over to his belongings to put on a couple more extra layers only for Hawkeye to stop him.

"Edward it's too dangerous. I'm just as worried about him as you are, we all are. But we are basically looking for a needle in a haystack, not to mention most of the town is covered in a thick layer of snow by now."

"If one of us was stuck, injured or lost he'd come and find us. I'm not giving up on him, we are in enemy territory and no one gets left behind regardless." She removed her hand allowing Ed to continue dressing. He was right, and everyone knew it. Riza was just looking out for his and Falman's safety, none of them experienced weather conditions like his, the snow storms at Briggs were pathetic compared to this one.  
Ed opened the door allowing Falman to take the lead as they left the building when Ed turned to face the four soldiers that remained.

"If he does come back while we are gone he is not to leave your sight."

Havoc smiled "We won't beat up that pretty face of his until you get back sir." Giving Ed a lazy salute as he proceeded through the door.

There were times Roy could have given up on him, but he never did, and now it was time for The Fullmetal Alchemist to return the favour. To not lose faith. This determination was not just because of the temporary brunettes feelings for his commanding officer, this was also about loyalty. As much as this unit could still operate without Roy, this unit needed Roy. Every soldier remained to help him achieve his goal and until that happened everyone was going to stay by his side. Many had been given offers to transfer elsewhere, but all refused. Ed himself had a vast array of requests put to him, but he would only work for Roy, there was no other option.

Hats, coats, gloves, hoods and scarves were wrapped tightly as they stepped out into the worst weather conditions they'd ever experienced. The soft image of snow was tainted as the beautifully decorated flakes hit their faces like gravel. The only positive they could get from this situation is that they wouldn't have to cover their footprints as the strong wind washed them away as soon as their feet left the floor. Partially covered from the buildings they didn't get the full brunt of the weather as they made their way through the alleys, but as they turned the final corner he could see the full force of what he had gotten himself in to.  
Pulling his scarf up to cover half of his face as they stepped into the wide open space of where the market is...or was. The snow now double the depth of what they walked through to get here. The short moments when the wind briefly died down he looked around to what was usually a bustling street, now a deserted and untouched white canvas. For those short moments the scene looked beautiful, but abruptly came to an end as the onslaught of howling winds and blinding snow resumed.  
Since talking was near impossible in the current conditions Ed turned to Falman, who now lead the way. The times Ed's hood flew off in a strong gust his now explosed flesh was pelted with ice needles as the snow came down harder. The sudden harshness of the weather tried to push them back, but both men refused, one of their own was missing and they were going to find him no matter how long it took.  
Falman pointed Ed into an alley, the walls surrounding them gave adequate protection from the raging blizzard a few yards from them and the chance to finally talk.

"That's the house I was observing, this was where I last saw him."

Ed looked back out to the single glow of light coming from an upstairs window. From the state of the house that was probably the only room which sheltered the occupants from the weather. All other visible windows had been completely broken in the strong wind.

"You don't think he could be in there?" The other man continued.

The Major General shook his head "Only if he wanted everyone to know who he was. He doesn't go waltzing into a targets building without back up." Ed took a glove off to pull out his pocket watch. Already an hour had passed since they left the others and there was no sign that the weather was going to back off even in the slightest.

"If he was unconscious.."

Ed snapped the casing of his watch shut. "That is not helping."

"Sorry sir." The intelligence expert immediatly responded under the menacing glare he was getting from his superior officer.

Elric looked down the alley, two pathways, straight ahead or left. "Do you know which one he took?"

"No, I saw him go down, swiftly following another man about seven feet ahead of him. But then I saw movement from the house and when I looked back he was gone."

There was no doubt in Ed's mind that the other man was Henry.

"How long were your eyes averted?"

"Ten to twelve seconds."

Ed took a moment and stared down the alley that continued forward. Even at Roy's walking pace there was no way that he could reach the end in twelve seconds, running yes but that would draw attention to himself. Neither of the generals made it this far when they were exploring, they were going to, but the sighting of First Lieutenant Hachmar changed their plans and then they ran into Hawkeye and Fuery - literally.  
Shaking off any snow that had collected on their clothing Ed now lead the way to the left path.

The Major General thought they were just going round in circles - Left turn, right turn, right turn, left, with every route as empty as the last, until one path opened out. The two men looked at each other and quickened their walking pace, as much as they could through the snow. At the end in a small, but open area was a wooden building. No sign of footprints, or if there were, they would have been covered up by the blanket of pure white that engulfed the area.  
Cautiously they approached the structure, not a doubt in either mind this must have been where Roy met with the contact. The building itself was in complete darkness, no sign showing that it was currently occupied. Ed slowly peered into the window hoping that by some luck he could see inside, but some shabby curtains were blocking his view. Even the small holes in the fabric didn't help.  
He looked back to his surroundings. Apart from where they came from there were two other routes leading away from the area, Roy really wasn't making this easy for them.  
Both took a place either side of the front door as Falman reached for the handle and slowly pushed the lever down, locked. Do they break the door down? Smash a window? Ed kept watch as Vato slowly proceeded to inspect the exterior on the other side. Roy was probably waiting inside with the most smug grin on his face, glass of whiskey in one hand, before saying 'What kept you?'.  
If that scenario turned out to be true Ed wouldn't know to kiss him for the relief that he was alright, or punch him in relief that he was alright and making him worry for no reason. It was highly likely that he could have been taking shelter, but the snow started just as the unit were to reconvene, he could have easily returned with no problem.

"Over here." Falman softly called out and cocked he head to the side in signal to follow. Walking around the building to see that the his colleague had come across another door. Taking their same stance as before Falman tried the handle again, the click of the latch confirmed they had access. Both men nervously looked to each other before Ed took the lead slowly and carefully opening the door, only for it not to open very far. Something was blocking their entry.

Ed pushed the panel with two hands, trying to push the obstruction back so he could at least enter the premises and clear the way for his subordinate. It was fairly heavy whatever it was, but there was a big enough gap that he could slip through, whilst Falman waited outside to keep a look out.  
Letting his hands feel their way along the wall he found a switch, not knowing if it was for the lights or something else he flicked it on. He had to momentarily close his eyes at the sudden brightness that engulfed the room, before slowly adjusting to the artificial sunlight. To his right were remains of what looked like two chairs, broken beyond repair. The table, which no doubt accompanied the chairs, had been flipped onto the wooden slab, two of the legs had been ripped off one way or another and were placed on the pile of broken seats. It was a relief that this item of furniture was the reason why the door didn't open and not something gruesome. Ed grabbed one of the splintered legs and dragged it back allowing his comrade entry as well.

Falman quietly closed the door behind him, but doesn't even have time to take in the surroundings of the practically empty room when the door leading to the front of the house suddenly clicks shut, startling both men. Ed's eyes never left that certain door as he reached for a couple of the splintered chair legs, grabbing one tightly in his hand before slowly handing one to his comrade.  
Had there been someone in the house the entire time, watching their every move? If this was Roy winding them up he was going to get one hell of a beating. If this was anyone else they would mostly get beaten to a point, just for startling Fullmetal, before interrogation.  
The men, slowly placing one foot in front of the other, quietly made their way to the door, each taking the same stance either side as they had previously. Ed was shaking, not from fear, but adrenaline as he reached for the handle, slowly curling one finger round the cold metal at a time. A count down for Falman as he slammed the door open.

Waiting in case of attack the two men held their positions, tightly gripping their weapons.  
Time had passed, nothing had stirred, the only thing to 'attack' them was the familiar smell strongly coming from the un-investigated room. Both men knew this smell all to well be it from the Ishvalen war to Scar's attacks, the smell of blood.  
The younger's arm quickly rounded the frame feeling for the light switch on the opposite side. Even as it switched on neither man moved until the signal was given, both rushing the room ready to defend themselves against anyone who dared strike them.

A bare and empty room, no furniture, no pictures, nothing. It was properly clear to the two Amestrians that this wasn't a place of residence. Papers scattered all over the floor, some stained with blood, others part soaked and a few submerged in the pool of blood in the corner. It wasn't the pool that concerned Ed, it was the tracks of something, or more reasonably, someone being dragged out the room. He followed the trail to the front, trying to open the door again. Locked, with the key itself still in the lock and bolted from the inside. There was no way anyone was here when they arrived, the only escape route was through the back door. Crouching down to the trail Ed took off a glove and ran a finger through the crimson stain, dry, but clearly not so old that it would have absorbed into the wooden flooring. Walking back to his colleague their eyes met before Ed glanced down to what he was holding, several sheets that had littered the floor only moments ago.

"He was here." Offering a couple of pages to Ed for him to quickly skim through.

Matlock's meeting places, descriptions of known associates, even the report on yesterday's findings. No doubt this is where Roy met up with Henry, but what happened during or afterwards? Was there a fight? Was that why the furniture is ruined? But then there were no other marks, no other signs of a struggle.  
He left Falman in the front room as he inspected the back. Something was amiss. The scarce furniture was all broken, but all left in one place. Who would take the effort to put it in a pile? The splintered items should be scattered throughout the room at least. Picking up the broken items he gently placed them against the wall. Looking to the now cleared space he carefully walked along each floorboard. A creak here and there until his eyes transfixed on some darker spots just to the side of him. It wasn't a mass amount like the other room, but a fair size.

"Trail to the front is dry, even in this coldness so it's been here for a few hours at most." He looked to Falman as he entered the room. "Knowing Roy, that man would put up one hell of a fight. That in there I seriously doubt is him." Meaning the large blood puddle. "This smaller bit here I can believe." Pointing to the small patch in front of him. "But then again neither could be him. But I'd go by the theory that him and the undercover guy were here and attacked. The only thing that doesn't make sense is that there are no dents or marks on the wall, the furniture piled on one spot.."

"And you wondered why Investigations are pulling every string possible in a desperate bid to get you on board.  
But then if he did escape...where is he?"

Ed quickly walked back to the front room window and drew the curtains to look out the window. It was a great relief to see the wind had died down considerably since they've been in here, but now replaced with thick flakes of snow. "The snow didn't start until around five, by then the meeting would have been over regardless. You know how punctual Mustang can be, especially since he got that promotion."

Falman gathered all the pages that were still read worthy and followed Ed to the back door.

"Suppose..." Ed pausing on the door handle and looking to his friend and colleague "...someone comes along, unexpectedly. A fight erupts and you have a small window for a chance to escape...which alley would you go down?"

"The one that led us here, it's the only route we know."

"But that route leads back to the rest of us. If Roy was in trouble then you, Hawkeye and possibly Havoc or Breda would jump in to help him, blowing cover for all but two of us since me and Fuery were further away." Pushing the handle he opened the door for the freezing chill to attack them full force once more. "Me and him never explored this far." Looking to the only visible alley from their position. "But my first and only thought now is that he went down that one, the closest." Pulling the hood of his coat back over his head before heading back out into the freezing weather.

Falman didn't doubt Ed's skills and knowledge, he proved it many times and would willingly follow the younger man knowing he was their best bet to even be able to find the General.

Twists and turns, as many as the alleys they walked through finding the hut. Ed had definitely lost sense of direction at this point, if you asked him which general area the hut was in he couldn't tell you. Time just kept passing, as much as he wouldn't give up it was nearing close to midnight. Roy staying out in this weather would be just as bad as when he fell into the river and it wasn't getting any warmer.

"Shit."

Falman wasn't one for swearing, but when he did Ed knew it was bad. Turning the corner they were greeted with a dead end, did they end up going the wrong way? Did they waste valuable time going through passages that led to nowhere? No there had to be a reason. People just don't make long dead ends, unless it was a ploy, thinking an escapee would lose their pursuers only to be trapped like a mouse in a cage? The closer Ed got to the back wall the more something seemed amiss. Debris consisting of sticks, leaves and rock seemed to be awkwardly placed. Grabbing one of the stones and pulled it from the mangled mess. He was, for once, glad for the snow, as a dull light shone through the gap. He looked through to see an open area a few feet away from their position. That was all the conformation he needed as he quickly pulled whatever he could away, not caring as sharp debris scraped his hands. The gap was thin, but not thin enough that, say a person, could slip through. Ed looked through to the other side which turned out to be a mirror image of what was behind him, the continuation of the alley. Ed was questioning his logic, if Roy went this way then why waste time blocking the route? If he was being chased he wouldn't of have had the time to do this, would he? And more to the point why was there a random wall cutting the passageway in half? It wasn't making much sense, that voice in the back of the natural blonde's head was telling him to turn back, check the third and final alley, Roy did not go this way. Yet his gut was telling him to proceed, investigate the other side of this wall and see where it led. Which did he follow? In times like these he wished he could split himself in two and explore both areas, put his mind, and heart, at ease. This was not the time to waste any more precious minutes, he went with his gut instinct, something that has helped him in the past and he couldn't doubt it at such a crucial moment.  
He side shuffled through the gap, it was a tight squeeze. His build wasn't that much different from Roy's giving him that glint of hope that he came through here himself. Reaching the other side he looked around the area, waiting for Falman to follow him.

The route opened out into an area the size equivalent to Central Headquarters, grounds and all. Throughout the site were small snow mounds in rows stretching from one end to the other all equal distance apart. Ed walked up to the closest pile and gently wiped the snow away revealing a grey and worn stone sticking in the ground.

'Here lies Terrew Viskgan, 1724-1756, A true Hero and inspiration.'

Falman crouched next to him "1756, that was the Drachman civil war if memory serves me correct. We don't know how the whole thing started, but there was tremendous bloodshed."

He looked up at the rest of the uncovered mounds, there must have been a good four hundred minimum. Seeing the rows and rows upon deceased was a solemn reminder to anyone how cruel and brutal wars can be.

The men walked around the outside of the site, neither wanting to disrespect the deceased, but quickly made their way around the grounds. Their aim was the small building at the far end of the compund.

The building itself was of pretty astonishing architectural design. The two men had never seen anything like it in Drachma, yet alone Amestris. For the final ceremony before they commend the body to the ground no expense was clearly spared, for those who could afford it. Falman skimmed his fingertips over each stone that had a design engraved into it be it a coat of arms to animal, some legendary like dragons others as common as a ladybird. Ed approached the wooden doors not caring about what was on them, he was more focused on finding his commanding officer as his hand reached the handle.

"Shit!" He called out as he punched the door in frustration, locked. So much for being quiet in a place of rest. He took a step back and looked to the front of the building. Had his gut been wrong about this way? Did they just waste valuable time coming all this way for nothing? No, he wasn't going to give up.  
Without giving any warning to his comrade he rushed round to the side, checking the stain glass windows for any breakages. Roy had to be here, he had to give him his answer. Why the hell did he not say it then and there when Roy said he'd risk everything he had worked for. Why was he such an idiot. He should never have let Roy go see Henry on his own, it was originally agreed that they both went. The two of them together would have easily beat the crap out of whoever interfered.

None of the windows were smashed on one side. Ed began to head round the back to check on the other side when he almost tripped over uneven terrain. Cursing the unknown object he pulled the item out of the snow to reveal it to just be a cut of firewood that was stored in a little stone shed, sticking out the back of the building. Another bump was yet another piece. He looked to the stone shelter, it was full, some stupid idiot thought that instead of piling them to the side they'd throw it randomly on the floor.  
Something was odd about that full pile of chopped firewood though. The depth would have been enough for two complete rows to fit snugly inside, yet there was nothing really neat about how they were placed. Some of them were even placed so far out that they were barely balancing with the snow on top of them. Ed reached his hand over the top to find that only one row was there. Surely if that was they case they would have been pushed right to the back to keep them dry and out the way? Was something behind it? Or...someone? Was Roy taking shelter from the harsh weather? He slid both his hands in and pulled the top of the timber away to pool at his feet before pulling another handful until the entire pile had fallen messily on the floor. He had once more imagined the man being behind their with a smirk on his face, only to find nothing.

Ed picked up some of the blocks and hurled them were they came from. He crouched down and bowed his head to curb his frustration. Usually this would be where a person cries their heart out, but not Ed. He barely released any tears being the stronger brother, Alphonse usually cried for the both of them as he comforted his younger brother. He wanted nothing more than to call out The Flame Alchemist's at the top of his lungs in hope that he was in ear shot. Bad idea undercover in an enemy country with the next in line to be Führer missing. So where was he? Was he even alive?

"Nothings broken my side." Falman saw the crestfallen Major General. Feeling the exact same way, frustrated and defeated.

The natural blonde stood to his feet and took a deep breath. They went the wrong way, there was no time to dwell on it they had to get back quickly. Before he even took another step and spoke to his colleague a noise caught his attention. The Elric's head turned and focused on the closest corner to his left side.

Another noise, but different. He turned to Falman, who clearly heard the same thing. The younger male motioned to the other to stay exactly where he was as he slowly made his way closer to the sound. The clicks were getting clearer the closer he got, it sounded like someone walking on gravel. His eyes darted to the stone that fell to his feet before looking up.. "Fuck!" ..just in time to dodge a charging fox.  
He remained on the floor scowling at the retreating animal hoping it choked on a bone or something when out of the corner of his eye he caught sight sight of something black peeking through the snowdrift. His eyes slowly looked further into a thinner and sheltered alley to see a familiar brown coat.  
He froze before reality caught up to him. There was no sign of movement. His arms immediatly pushed him off the ground as he ran towards the body.

 _'Please don't be dead, please don't be dead'_ His head chanted as he skidded to a halt immediatly dropping to his knees to pull his superior out of the cramped walkway and into more workable space to assess him.

"Mus!" He called out to Falman as he pressed his fingers to their superior's wrist. He was alive and had a strong pulse, the sheer relief swept through Fullmetal's veins.

Falman was quickly by his side as he brought his hands up and cupped either side of Roy's face, slowly bringing his head up from where it rested on his chest. He took a staggered deep breath when he saw the state of his love's face as it nested in his palms. Never in his life did he ever think he'd see Roy Mustang in such a state as he did now. His blonde hair matted, the milky skin covered in blood and dirt. The amount of blood was very alarming not only with it dried on his face, but also absorbed by his clothing.

Ed looked down at the alleyway he had only just pulled the general from and looked to Falman "Can you go check it out?" The older man nodded without hesitation and quickly made his way down the darkened path.

Gently resting Mustang's head in one hand Ed gripped his glove between his teeth to quickly pull the fabric off his hand and placed his uncovered palm back to the discoloured skin. It hurt Ed to see him like this, it filled him with rage, a need for revenge, something that hadn't seen the light of day for so long. His sight was starting to get blurry, but he refused to let any tears out. Whoever did this will get their just desserts, he would make sure of that in due time.

Roy suddenly jerked in Ed's grasp.

Roy?" The younger man quietly spoke "Roy it's okay." Trying to calm the man as he weakly tried to get out of his grasp. He was that bad he couldn't even master the strength to raise his arms. "It's me, it's Ed. It's okay we've got you." Roy's tired eyelids slightly rose and looked to the nervous man. "We've got you, me and Falman are here. Don't worry, your safe." Using his uncovered hand he gently stroked the older man's cheek with his thumb in an attempt to soothe and calm the panicking man. "It's okay, just rest."  
Roy's half cast eyes slowly closed as he calmed in Ed's touch. Letting the new-found warmth slowly allow him to drift back to unconsciousness. Ed used the moment to brush away some of the blood matted hair from his face, taking a moment to press his forehead to the other. The man he had loved for so long, the man that was always in his mind first thing in the morning and last at night. He was here, in front of him. The worry and fear that had built up throughout the evening dispersed from his being, yet the adrenaline still remained. They were not out of the woods yet, Roy wasn't safe until his was back under the protection of the entire unit. Until then Ed would give his heart and soul protecting him, not just until then, until the end of time if he could. His feelings had never felt so strong for one person until Roy came into his life and he knew he'd never feel like this with anyone else.  
He pulled back as he heard Falman scurrying back up the passageway, but still gently head his superior's head in his hands.

"It's gets slightly narrow, but there is a way through. It will be difficult to carry him through, but it's possible." He knelt down beside Ed "How is he?"

"Exhaustion and most likely dehydration. Most likely his nose is broken, due to the amount of blood, but other then that I don't know. We'd have to leave the rest to Riza and Kain."

"Ed."

The Major General looked to Falman, not understanding why his name was mentioned, but no question asked. The man's eyes were still glued to their unconscious superior. So why was his name called? He was about to redirect his vision back to Roy when he noticed Vato's arm was out stretched. Following the direction he found a finger pointing to his neck. Ed's brow furrowed as he slowly raised Roy's head higher. The furrowed brow immediatly changed to shock, his eyes widened as his gaze was now fixed to a wound on his neck. Anyone could tell that the cut was too close for comfort. It looked deep, but thankfully the wound wasn't bleeding and if it was the man would have been dead some time ago. The two men looked to each other before silently agreeing to get him back to the others as quickly as possible. It was going to be a hard task shuffling through a narrow passageway with an unconscious man, but they had to do it. No way was Ed going to take him back the way he fled past that wooden shack or even past the main target house. Gently settling the man's chin on his chest Ed and Falman comrade brought the general upright before putting an arm over each of their shoulders.

With some careful manoeuvres they finally made their way into a more open space, Ed now opting to carry Roy on his back to save time as the two able bodied men made their way through the streets, Ed knew exactly where they were. This was the first area they came down, because they were running away from guards at the time. He opted not to completely walk back to the public house where this 'adventure' first began, instead directing them through the back streets. He turned his head slightly to look Roy. Unconscious and defenceless, were two words that came to mind, two words that should never describe the Flame Alchemist, but they did and it made Ed's heart even more painful. Throughout the way back he still questioned himself. Why didn't he go with him? None of this would have happened if he was there to protect him.

Falman pushed the heavy door to the stairwell open to allow both Generals through before taking lead up the steps. Calling out to whoever was on sentry duty Ed rushed up the crumbling stairs as fast as he could. Havoc being the one on duty now turned to doorman as Ed rushed the unconscious General through the corridor and into the unit's room. As soon as he stepped through he lowered the general with the help of Falman and Breda onto his bed with Hawkeye and Fuery immediatly wrapping the man up in more layers. Ed moved out the way as he struggled to get his breath back, his legs giving way as he slumped against the nearest wall. The relief of finally finding his superior had finally caught up to him. His legs, arms and back hurt like crazy, but the pain was worth it. Roy was back and he was safe. He was out the way, but still close enough to keep watch over proceedings as slowly but surely the dirt and blood were cleaned from Mustang's face. More cuts had revealed themselves, more bruises had formed. Roy being out for the count was definitely a good thing as his nose was gently cleaned before Hawkeye carefully held the bridge between her thumb and forefinger, slowly moving up inch by inch for signs of cracked cartilage. Attention suddenly focused on their superior's neck as the wound was dabbed clean, and thoroughly inspected.

"His nose isn't broken, just badly bruised." Riza began the patient report. "The cuts on his face are minor and would easily heal as to the swelling. The cut on his neck... any further along and it would have penetrated the right common carotid artery and jugular vein. It's deep, but clearly wasn't deep enough to do any excessive damage."

Fuery slipped out one of the general's bare arms "There's also bruising to his wrists and upper arm suggesting his arms were immobile and tied." Before replacing the limb back under the mound of clothing that was keeping the high ranked officer warm.

Ed stared at the unconscious man. He escaped before his throat was cut, which meant that they were disturbed. Matlock's blood soaked blade surely wasn't a coincidence, he must have been there. But who's blood and body was dragged out the door? Henry? Someone else?  
He couldn't dwell on it now, Ed's focus was on Roy and Roy alone. As much as he wanted whoever was responsible to pay for what they had done he wasn't a man who'd just run aimlessly into danger like his younger self.

For now all they could do was wait. What happened hours ago will be told in due time. Until then, Ed would remain watching over Roy and not leave his side.


	20. Where have you been?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So what did happen to Roy?

His eyes snapped open to be greeted with a sight he had gotten familiar with seeing. The ghastly grey ceiling that always greeted him every morning, but right now it confused him. How?...When did he get here? Not that he was complaining. But his memory was completely blank up until the time where he was about to make his way down that stupidly narrow alleyway. Did he black out after being attacked? Did he make his way back? Did he fall unconscious due to blood loss? His hand went immediatly to his neck, instead of finding the deep marking that almost cost him his life he found a medical dressing in it's place. Why can't he remember what happened after the cemetery? Just thinking made his headache worse. From a low pain it now felt like a herd of elephants were stampeding through his head continuously. The last time he felt like this was when he had one too many scotches at the bar back in his younger military years, and the light coming into the room wasn't making him feel any better, at least his pillow was a well folded coat, it was definitely better then the solid suitcase he was oh too familiar with.  
The room was eerily quiet, bar from one sound, he slowly turned his head to the side. There in the bed next to his was a relaxed and peaceful face as the soft breaths reached his ears in a slow and steady rhythm. He couldn't help but smile as he watched the younger man sleep and in honestly couldn't wait for more times that he would be able to in the confines of a nice, warm bed if Ed accepted. Talking of warm, his own body was sweltering, the layers upon layers of clothing that were piled on top of him were making the general feel like a hog roast. His arms were stiff and ached, but he managed to push off half the items that covered him from neck to toe. With that extra bit of freedom his focus was now to his throat. He was parched to the point that it felt like there was a desert in his mouth. The water wasn't that far away and he didn't feel like he was that badly injured, he was just sore all over, but as soon as he began to sit up a sharp pain struck him like a bolt of lightning. He hissed in agony, but continued to try and at least sit upright, clutching to his side and digging his fingers in like it was about to fall off.

"Hey hey hey, what are you doing? Lay back down!"

A gentle hand was placed onto the flame's chest and quickly lowered him back down onto the small bundle of clothes as a makeshift pillow. The person got up and proceeded to the other side of the room before returning and taking a seat next to the recovering general. The next thing Roy knew was his head and neck being raised as cool and refreshing liquid was slowly poured into his mouth. It was like a godsend for Mustang even though he could only take a small amount at a time causing some of the fluid to run out the corner of his mouth and down his chin. The bottle was pulled back before a cloth wiped any trickle of water up in an instant before the process was repeated again a couple of times.

"You want any more?" Was the question asked as the bottle was emptied.

Roy shook his head "I'm good." Before his head was gently lowered once more. He looked up to see Ed's false blue eyes staring back at him. "Thanks. I woke you didn't I?"

"Yeah, but it's fine. I was supposed to be looking after you anyway." Brushing a loose bit of fringe from Roy's eyes. "Sorry to put this on you as soon as you wake up but... Do you remember anything?"

"From the meeting?" Ed nodded, and Roy mentally hit himself. Of course that was what the younger man was asking. "..but only as far as the cemetery that is where it gets hazy."

"Me and Falman went to look for you in the blizzard. I found you unconscious in the cemetery. You were startled to say the least I managed to calm you down before you went back to the land of the fairies."

Roy's brow furrowed "I don't remember that.."

"Seriously? You were hyperventilating and trying to escape with what little energy you still had left!" Roy just looked bewildered at the man

"You came looking for me?" Clearly Roy's head wasn't clear enough to put two and two together

"Well..Yeah, I was worried, well... I mean... we all were. You definitely didn't make it easy for us. I did want to punch you but someone clearly beat me to it so I thought I'd be kind, sweet, considerate Ed instead." He smiled down as he swatted the general's hand away from his nose "It's fine, it's only bruised, surprising by the amount of blood that you had lost from it."

"You've been looking after me all this time?"

The younger man nodded "I even washed your hair."

"Such dedication." Well at least his sarcasm was intact.

"Yeah well.. Didn't want you stinking up the place." The younger man laughed before his features turned serious. "Why didn't you take me with you?"

"Because I didn't know things turned out how they did." Roy ignored the pain stabbing through his side to sit up, with a little help from Ed, and at eye level to the natural blonde. "If I did know you'd be the first person I would have asked, you know that. I was supposed to be a few questions and that was it. I honestly didn't know it would get out of hand and ended up like it did."

"For a moment, when I saw you lying there..not moving. For a brief moment... I thought you were dead.."

Roy's arm rose up and pulled the younger man's head onto his shoulder "I thought I was too." He rested his head on Edward's false coloured locks. The younger man wasn't one for comforting, but he allowed the older man to console him as they sat in silence just relishing that they were in the embrace of the one they nearly lost.

_Matlock walked up to him, invading Roy's personal space. "TELL ME! TELL ME WHAT YOU KNOW AND YOUR LIFE SHALL BE SPARED!"_

_Roy stared straight ahead._

_"If you want to die then so be it."_

_As the knife was placed once more onto his throat he didn't regret his choice. Amestris is his home and he was going to protect it. He had every belief that his unit will pull through and succeed in the assignment with or without him. This only regret was not getting together with Ed sooner, not to feel those lips on his once more. If only he left his law abiding ego back in Amestris._  
_Roy looked to his executioner smiling. He hadn't won, Drachma hadn't won and they never would win._

_"Any last words?" As the blade pressed harder into his skin._

_The General stood tall, took a deep breath before spitting his own blood at Matlock_

_"Long live Amestris." His last words as the blade penetrated his flesh._

_As soon as the blade was inserted he could feel the warm crimson liquid begin to quickly glide down his skin. There it remained for a few moments before ever so slowly cutting more. He knew what the man was aiming for and when it did hit it's intended target there was definitely no going back. This was his last chance to say something that would save his life. Well it would have been if the blade hadn't been removed and a cloth was being pressed against the wound._

_"Guy."_

_Matlock signalled to the card trickster who now swapped places with the fugitive as the Drachman searched through his own bag, pulling out some sort of rolled up cloth. He placed it on the table and slowly rolled it out. Disbelief was what came to Roy's mind first as he looked to all the implements now on full view. Each item had it's own little pocket, how sweet, a torturers multi-tool pouch. Scalpels, small knives, tweezers, a knife sharpener, pilars, syringes and everything else for your torturing needs. But what he picked out first was a little surprising. From another pouch he pulled out a good amount of cotton wool and a bottle. He poured the contents into a small cup before carefully grabbing his shiny, pristine tweezers he grabbed one of the cotton balls and dipped it in the substance._

_"Hold still" He commanded the General winced when a sharp stabbing pain ran up his nose. There were two guesses as to what they were doing. One, rubbing acid or two, cleaning the wound and stemming any bleeding. Roy couldn't smell anything, but he'd guess it was the second option. So then why were they suddenly helping him? They were the ones who did this to him? Was this attacker's guilt or some other lame term he was going to come up with._

_"You definitely made it difficult for us." Matlock spoke as he disposed of the crimson soaked cotton ball for a cleaner one "I'm guessing you excelled in the torture and interrogation lesson."_

_"Thought you were going to kill me, not tend to my wounds." Roy spat out in a deep tone, not giving any hint that he was flabbergasted by what was suddenly happening._

_"Well If I did that I wouldn't get very far. This is how I sort the men from the boys, so to speak. Weak from the strong. Loyal from traitorous."_

_Ah great Roy had to get caught by some crazed maniac who is going to thrive on torturing to the brink of death. It was a technique that only the craziest of people will do, for severely desperate measures or just plain entertainment. Killing their 'patient' before bringing them back to life to start the horrifying torment once again._  
_He was alive at least, it was better then being in a bloodied heap on the floor, but now he wasn't too sure._  
_His head was tilted to the side as the cloth removed from his neck so now the knife wound could be tended to. What exactly were these people going to do to him? What he wouldn't give for one of his unit to come bursting through that door to save him. The fact that no one has meant Matlock didn't make his way here through the same route as what he and Henry did and they didn't pass Havoc, Breda, Fuery or Edward. If he did they would have no doubt intervened ages ago. He couldn't pinpoint which direction they came from, obviously the north or south passage, but since him and Edward never explored this area not even his extent of knowledge could help him._

_"So.." Roy's head was jerked upright "...what are we going to do with you?" He walked around the man and stopped behind him. "I don't have enough time before those other two come back."_

_Roy could feel the rope pinning his hands together being loosened, but as the rope fell to the floor his right hand was grabbed and turned. The tight rope around his wrists burned deep into his skin. He could feel the breath of the man as he scanned the back of his hand. Roy's heart dropped and prayed the man had bad eye sight, he couldn't be found out now, especially not here. His heart rapidly beat in his chest, his mouth was suddenly so dry, but he refused to show any sign of weakness or fear. His eyes followed Matlock as he walked back in front of him. His hand rubbing his stubble in thought before looking to the Amestrian general._

_"Had to see it to believe it. So Henry was right, which means there is a high possibility that the other man, which has been spotted with you, is the other name he mentioned. If that's the case things must be serious, sending out a General and Major General to do their work."_

_He knew, they all knew, Roy Mustang and Edward Elric were in Drachma. Henry's betrayal was extreme, and now he was at the complete mercy of these two men. The perfect bargaining tool. The possibilities were endless as to what would happen to him, and how long will it be until they get Ed? They could use him, get Ed to make himself known, and the rest of his unit. All they researched and worked for was about to be all in vain, because of one person, that's all it took, one person to turn their back on the place they were born and raised, educated and trained, ate and drank.. their homeland._

_Matlock rubbed his face in his hands before addressing him. "Forgive me sir, my ploy was rather extreme."_

_Roy's brow furrowed and his eyes widened in astonishment did he just call him 'sir'? The bindings on his wrists and arms were released, before Guy stood beside Frazen._

_"I had to make sure. I've come across many who were doing it for the 'greater good', when in reality they were turning their backs on their homeland."_

_There was a sudden knock at the door._

_He quickly picked up the flames satchel and pulled out the map. "Meet me here." Pointing to the destination "Meet me and Guy here. I'm going to open the front door, and when I do that Guy will let you out the back."_

_"Who are you?" After all that happened he had the right to know._

_"Doesn't matter at this moment in time." Quickly pushing the paper back into the satchel and putting the strap over Roy's head and onto his shoulder._

_"Oh I think it does matter since my original contact is no longer alive. No thanks to you" Grabbing the man's jacket without haste._

_There was another knock "Boss?"_

_Matlock looked at the door, then back to Roy "I did you a favour, and I'm giving you another one. If you want to get back to Amestris you will meet us there."_

_The two men exchanged glances before Roy let him go, allowing Matlock to go to the front door whilst him and Guy went to the back._

_"Trust us" Guy whispered in his ear before he opened the door._

_Trust was something Roy wasn't keen on doing, not after seeing Henry reveal his true colours right before his very eyes. But now he couldn't think about it, he had to escape. Which way does he go? Back the way he came?_

_"Hey!"_

_The Flame turned round to see one of the men that took Henry's body away no more than seven feet behind him. He didn't have time to make a choice, taking off in an immediate sprint down the alley closest to him. The man continued shouting, but there was no way he was going to stop. What worried Roy wasn't the fact that he was spotted by one man, it was the fact that he was running down an alley way which he had no clue where it led. Turn after turn he ran as fast as he could, unable to shake off his pursuer. Matlock and Guy let him go, so why was this man on his tail? Turn after turn Roy continued down the unknown paths, his muscles were beginning to tire and was beginning to feel very light-headed, which was no doubt because of blood loss, the evidence clear to see all over his clothing. Turning one last corner he met with a sight he really didn't want to see at a time like this - a dead end. Now he'd have to face his pursuer and-_

_He didn't have time to finish his thought when he was grabbed and harshly pushed against the wall face first. The rough stone scrapped against his cheek and forehead as his arms were harshly bent behind his back with force close enough to breaking them._

_"Thought you'd get away? Well I got something for ya, after all even if you did tell the boss what you know, doesn't mean you get away scott free." Roy received a sharp jab to his side. "It just means I can put all my anger and frustration on you since I couldn't do it to...what was his name? Henry."_

_Roy had enough of being on the back foot, mustering up all his strength he forced the man back onto the opposite wall causing the hold on him to loosen and opened the chance to break free. Elbowing the man in the gut he pushed himself forward, spinning on his heels before landing a right hook to the side of the man's face. The man himself recovered almost instantly, pulling out his own knife for his offence._  
_Roy looked at the blade and sighed, by the end of his time in Drachma he doesn't want to see a blade again unless it was used for cutting the food on his plate. The man swung the blade recklessly with every approach Roy made to disarm him, but the General was slowly losing his strength and grabbing a hold of the offensive arm was proving difficult. He had to get closer, even though it would be risky, allowing the man to strike his face. The window of opportunity arose as the man gloated, Roy lunged and disarmed the man in a swift second, the knife itself flung its way back down the alley where the two men had come from. The man looked in shock before Roy punched him once more. As soon as the blow landed Mustang staggered back, his legs gave way and slid down the uneven surface of the building behind him, placing his hands on his face as the light-headedness had returned. Why now of all times did his mind and body start stalling on him. He pulled his hands away to see one of them covered in the crimson he was beginning to know oh so well during this assignment. He felt nauseous, closing his eyes to concentrate before opening them to be greeted with double vision. He looked up to the man now looming over him, but he was different. Not the big built man from before, he was now in an conscious mess on the opposite wall. This new man was trying to say something to him, but it wasn't registering, it was just noise to the future Fuhrer._

_"Come on you've got to get up!"_

_He was being pulled to his feet, but his legs just didn't want to register. In the end he was dragged to the end of the alley and to a gap in the wall that wasn't there before. He looked back at his helper before stumbling through the gap and falling on the ground the other side. He looked back to see the gap already being filled in once more in much haste._

_"Keep going." Was all he said as he sealed the hidden exit._

_Slowly pulling himself up and using the wall as support he slowly made his way out into an open space. Wasn't the best image to greet him, it was more like welcoming him to his demise. The rows upon rows of grey headstones that filled the entire area, the darkness of the sky adding to the already hauting image. He didn't have time to investigate or have a curious look, not that his light-headedness would allow him to read anything in the first place, he had to get back to the others as quickly as possible. Easier said then done when your legs don't want to communicate with the rest of your body and you have no idea where you were. As much as his determination to carry on was great, his mind and body where two separate things, he had to rest, he wouldn't get very far in this state. Even if he did, walking out onto a main route would only get him unwanted attention. If any one else was after him it was the place he'd rather not go to. Guy may have helped him back at the hut, but there was no telling if anyone else would follow, he needed to find a hiding place and shelter all in one. Further ahead was a building, or two, maybe even three he couldn't distinguish between the reality and false images that his eyes were transmitting to his brain. It was seemingly the only place he could go, but since he was in a cemetery it could mean the building was some sort of church, he could rest up in there no problem._

_When he did finally reach the doors he tried the handle several times before coming to the conclusion that it was locked and won't move. For time he thought about using alchemy, all he needed to do was clap his hands, but that was too risky in itself. His mind wasn't strongly focused, anything could happen, he could even end up injuring himself more than what he already was._  
_He could break one of the stain glass windows, but that would be too noticeable and he didn't even have the strength to walk yet alone to pull himself up. Where could he go? There was no other option as he pulled himself along the side of the building. He could collapse at any moment and when he did he needed to be out of sight not to mention the weather was getting rather unpredictable as the wind was starting to pick up. His last hope was a log storage at the rear of the church, he couldn't be careful he needed something fast. Dropping to his knees as the strength all but gone he quickly removed the broken firewood pile by pile, not caring exactly where they landed. Behind was another pile, but it was something he could work on if he moved quickly enough. Taking a quarter of the wood away, he slowly moved his hand around the back and carefully pushed the row forward up to the point it was now practically in line with the entrance to the stone shed. It gave him shelter, that's all he needed right now. Crawling behind the pile and replaced the wood he took off to completely box himself in._  
_He needed to stay awake, but no matter what thought ran through his head no matter how sweet, gentle, horrifying or violent his eyelids were going against his demands._

 _The fierce and howling wind was what managed to wake him up as he slowly came back to reality. His back hurt sitting in the most awkward of positions, but he hadn't been found and he was still alive, that was all that mattered at this moment in time. His clothing was more stained then what he remembered causing the man to quickly check every wound to make sure it had stopped. He didn't have anything to look at his reflection but he could feel the dried flakes of blood dominating the lower half of his face, meaning Matlock's clean up job was in vain. That name was giving him a headache all over again, more unanswered questions then before bombarded his brain._  
_Removing some of the wooden blocks he looked out to see a full force blizzard. How long had he been unconscious? Clearly too long from the depth of the snow settled on the ground. But a blizzard was perfect cover, if anyone was after him they wouldn't be trawling through these conditions and no doubt any sign of him being here would be washed away in seconds. He crawled out from his hiding place and quickly replaced the blocks as the harsh weather attacked him with such force. No clue could be left that he had been here. The pile of wood was sticking out more then it was, but it was passable enough. Problem now was which way does he go? Not that he could see that far in front of him. He at least needed some sort of shelter from these heavy winds before they blew him off his feet. By the time he got nearer the buildings closest to the church the winds died down to almost nothing. He could see around him and he could see a way out. Rushing up to the passageway he looked down the route. It was rather narrow, but it was a way out._  
_He didn't know why he didn't push on, instead he turned to watch the heavy snow flakes fall from the sky. Even though he was in a graveyard it was still a beautiful sight but it was the last thing he'd remember before falling into unconsciousness once more._

Roy looked around the circle as he finished his recollection of what happened. Each and every person's expressions were the same, solemn and deep in thought. The extent of Henry's betrayal was a massive shock in itself yet alone Matlock's actions.  
They were now in a difficult position. Do they (meaning Roy) listen to Matlock and go to meet him again or do they go their own way?

xXx

Ed sighed as he heard the familiar tapping before the door quietly swung open.

"Roy I said I was doing mine and your sentry duty, you're supposed to be resting." Roy didn't take heed to Ed's words carefully walking to the stairs and taking his usual spot next to the younger man.

Ed's eyes looked to the battered and bruised face beside him "You look like absolute shit."

The two men spluttered with laughter, but it didn't take too long for Roy to hold the side of his face as a jolt of pain flashed through his cheek.

"Thanks for telling me that, I never would have known." Roy gave a half smile to the younger man. "Credit where it's due. Falman told me what happened when you came to search for me. How you kept a professional manner despite the circumstances. He was also astounded by the professionalism, first time he's seen you hard at work for a while."

"Well got to set an example, keep a level head and examine all possibilities. Have you know that in my head there was always the image of you sitting on a chair nice and relaxed with a glass of scotch in your hand ready to laugh at us."

"Hmm that could be a thought for a drill in the future.." Roy thought out loud. "Would be quite nice having a drink whilst everyone else works around me."

"Everyone works around you anyway."

"But without the drink.."

Ed's features turned serious as looked down the still crumbling steps "So what are you going to do then? I mean with Matlock."

"What other choice do we have? I'll have to go see him."

"After what he's done to you!? The other choice is not to go! Regardless if he is seemingly on our side, which I find it very hard to believe, you can't trust him!"

"Ed, if he meant serious harm he would have handed me to the authorities, used me as bait to either the unit, Amestris or both. Or he would have killed me."

"He almost killed you, or have you forgotten the wound on your neck, the cuts on your face yet alone a damn bloody nose? How do you know he isn't leading you on? How do you know he won't suddenly turn like Henry and kill you in front of someone who knows you? What if someone higher up knows who you are?"

"Then he would have told them, both of them would have, but neither did. Look, he knows I'm at least with someone else so I'll have someone as protection."

"You better mean me."

"I was more thinking of Hawkeye."

"If you hadn't forgotten Roy that two people were seen leaving that other building - you and me. And from what you said Matlock has a very good description of me."

"Exactly. You maybe slightly taller than her, but it would be passable."

"May I add Hawkeye has these things called breasts. I'm sure you've heard of them, those things on her chest that bounce and wiggle, unless all the people you were with before were secretly men in drag." Roy raised an eyebrow. "She is good, but I'm you best choice in hand to hand combat. If you're doing this to protect me then don't. I should have been there when you first went to visit Henry as well as the second time, and look what happened. You nearly died and we nearly lost our commanding officer. So no matter what you say I am coming with you." He looked back to Roy. "We shouldn't really talk about this anyway until you are healed. Go back to bed and rest like you're supposed to."

He watched as Roy began to leave without hesitation, just slower than usual. But the closer he got to the door Ed knew he forgot one important thing he was going to do when they were alone together. As soon as the door unlatched he jumped to his feet and quickly caught up.

"Roy, wait." He stopped the man in his tracks before pushing the door shut. "You know last time we were here and you said that you were willing to risk everything?"

The man nodded "Of course, and I meant every word of it."

"Well I never gave you my answer."

"Ed.. you don't have to, take however long you need, I can wait."

Ed closed the gap. "Well maybe I don't want to wait."

There was a moment where neither moved, both lost in the others features before the tension was too much and their lips gently met.


	21. tbc

Ed's eyes darted left to right as he watched his superior pacing across the room, stopping once again to take out his pocket watch - which was probably only two minutes since he last checked it, before he continued fast pacing once more. Ed had never seen this side of Roy, the nervousness, the uncertainty, a man with such a powerful control on others, now practically in their shoes. Of course the ex alchemist was nervous as well, who wouldn't? Two of the most high ranked Generals in the Amestrian military were going to head to a location, unknown whether they are going to meet ally or foe. In any opposing country having the names Roy Mustang and Edward Elric will make sure your requirements are listened to and most likely met.  
But the younger man kept a level head, he was the bodyguard of the next Fuhrer of Amestris, he couldn't afford to worry when his job was to protect his General, his love. If he failed, one or both of them would end up dead, something the natural blonde didn't dare think of. Roy meant everything to him.

Finally standing from his bed he stretched out any stiffness present before walking over to Roy. The older man stopped pacing to look at him, his teal eyes looking straight into Ed's blue. The temporary brunette kept a straight face as the slowly removed each of Roy's digits that had clasped tightly over the metal casing of the pocket watch. Ed never thought he'd miss the distinctive insignia of the Amestrian state military as much as he did now, those homely touches that made them feel much safer, now many miles away in a different country.

The General watched as each finger was removed from the object he didn't even realise he was holding so tightly, his brain didn't even register to just loosen the hold and give the item to the man who was silently asking for it.

Clicking open the watch Ed looked at the time before looking to his superior officer. "We'd best head out." Clicking the instrument shut again without even looking before placing the item gently into Mustang's trouser pocket.

Roy nodded "I'll take the northern route past Hawkeye and Havoc, you take southern by Fuery and Breda. We meet before Falman, if all goes well we take the route back past Falman, who will inform the others." Reciting the agreed plan.

Seeing Ed's eyebrows furrow, in what was no doubt confusion, the General smirked. He knew what Ed was thinking, Hawkeye did the same thing the first time she saw her commander like this. The pacing wasn't an act of nervousness, it was the desire to get started. Being kept under 'house arrest' until wounds were healed was torture. Yes there were times that he coped, but only because Ed was there as well. After all, the desk job he was unintentionally stuck to, due to all the paper work, meant he wasn't actually in the field or out of office very often. Of course the eldest Elric wouldn't have known this being absent from military duties for 6 months. Doing as much as he had done since they prepared their journey here combined with all the work they were doing it was a relief that he was doing something he actually wanted to do and not forced to sign page after page of paperwork. Yes this was one of the most dangerous missions he had been on in years, but he wouldn't trade it to sit at that desk.

"After you then.." Roy stretched his arm out towards the door that lead to the stairwell seeing as it was the blonde's turn to be in a trance.

It took Ed a couple of seconds to understand Roy's situation, before turning round and opening the door for himself and the general as they made their way to the outside down the decaying concrete steps of the stairwell.

It had been three days since Roy regained conciousness and despite of requests to rest further he was having none of it.

All pros and cons listed for each supposed action. Ignoring Matlock's request, tailing Matlock, storming the target house, no suggestion was left unsaid. But the curiosity of Matlock's reasoning for letting the General go free was just too great to ignore. He wasn't undercover, otherwise Roy would have known before he even made the trip out there. Henry was on a very small list of undercover investigators still reporting back from Central Drachma, and he was the only one that reported every week on the dot. Look how that turned out. You can't even trust the ones who were doing their job.

The two men split up a few blocks away from the targeted building, now both going in opposite directions to meet with their comrades.

xXx

Ed had the easier of the two routes, but was more at risk of being spotted, as he walked down a bustling street. The street itself wasn't of any importance, it was just the road that connected the residential districts to the mayhem that was the trade district. Luckily for Ed since there was a bitter chill due to the open space most of the people had their heads covered in every attempt to keep warm, giving the younger ex alchemist an easy job of blending in with the crowd.  
He spotted Fuery in the distance, which meant that his turning was coming up, but before he could proceed any further he was dragged into a small alcove. Now he knew this was going to happen, but Breda, being the tank that he is, used a bit too much strength as he was pushed against the wall with his coat crushed in the man's grasp.

"Well, well, so very glad to see ye 'gain. Thanks fer droppin' by. So..where's my cash?"

Ed glanced to his side to see there was a small audience, but when Breda turned and glared at them they quickly turned head and carried upon their business.

"I owe you nothing." Ed harshly responded.

Breda smiled menacingly and leaned closer to the natural blonde "I haven't seen those other two you associate with either, seems like you're all avoiding me. Not very nice when I 'ave a business to run. So when you do see 'em, tell 'em I'll be waiting." He released Ed from his grasp, pushing him out back into the street in the process. So much for blending in as he pulled his hood over his face and continued on his way.

After this mission Ed didn't want to have to see another alleyway again, as he made his way to his and Roy's meeting point. What good came out of these anyway? All they did in Amestris was just link one area to another, a street to another street one building to another. But here they decided to make them stupidly long with twists and turns all over the place, a good labyrinth, make people lose all sense of direction. Sure they were a good tool to lose pursuers...to a degree, remembering the time when him and Roy were fleeing, but they were nothing but irritating.

Roy had his route memorised like he used the same paths everyday. Turn left at the end of the alley, right onto the cobbled road, take another right, then left, which lead to the river. But as soon as the sound of the torrent crept into his ears it brought back the harrowing images of Ed practically lifeless and clinging onto that ladder for dear life. It was the image that gave Roy a right good kicking to actually admit to Ed, and himself, that every moment is precious and waiting was a task that he simply couldn't achieve, well it took him a punch to the face before saying it out loud to the one person that it truly mattered to.  
The bridge was in sight. Jean and Riza would be somewhere close by, leaving in the early hours of the morning along with the rest of the squad, to take their positions and take note of any suspicious activity. Roy walked along the river's edge, this area had railings, unlike further down stream. Looking through the gaps between the bars he could see the fierce current bashing against any obstacle in its way, still the same as that day, the thunderous roar being produced as it tumbled down a makeshift waterfall. To Roy rivers were calm, relaxing and majestic creation of nature not like this brutal, cold, loud and harsh water rush which nearly took the life of one of Amestris' finest.

Turning his eyes from the water he set his sights on Brunettes Hawkeye and Havoc, leaning against a wall in between two raised flower beds, or what were supposed to be flowerbeds. You couldn't exactly tell if there were any flowers in the planter, what with all the rubbish that had been thrown into them. The Flame walked past them and took a seat on a nearby bench with a clear view of his subordinates. Havoc was leaning against the wall, hands on Riza's hips as the woman stood directly in front of him, her finger tips stroking along the slicked, dark hair, with the touch of affection which made their ploy more realistic. The area they were currently in was a beauty spot for lovers, strangely enough it didn't exactly look anything beautiful at all. The railing that followed the river had dangerously sharp spikes on the top, flowerbeds were just a mess of trash and soil, the noise was...someone clearly getting 'serviced' somewhere nearby. He did his utmost best blocking the disturbing moans of pleasure that were penetrating his ears by looking back at the members of his unit, Havoc's eyes meeting his as he gently kisses Hawkeye's neck before whispering something in her ear. As soon as he pulled back their lips were on each other's in a matter of milliseconds, lingering in an act of passion before Havoc pulled away and made his way over to his commanding officer.

Credit due to those two, they pulled that façade off well..a little too well? Maybe he was reading a little too much into something so innocent as 'playing a character'. He shouldn't be one questioning anyway, since him and Ed would be much more of a farce and talking point. He looked away as they broke apart before Havoc swaggered over to him, sitting immediatly next to and putting his arm around his superior in an over-friendly embrace.

"Couldn't help a guy out could ya?" Roy glanced to the younger man before resuming looking at a certain brick on the building across the bridge. "I'm outta cash and my lady over there, she has standards to be met. I tell ya she's always needing attention. You're the first person to come by here..well apart from the two behind there, but they've been there a while, didn't want to disturb them." Eyes directing to the building beside them.

That was what Roy needed to hear. He was the first person to come by here, his way was clear.

"What I'm trying to say is you got any on you? Or chuck us a bit of cash? A ladies needs must be met y'know, surely a man like you knows that...right?"

The Flame was ever so grateful that Havoc never acted like this around him or he might just have been in the firing line of ignition cloth and a snap of his fingers. He turned his head to the grinning man and glared at him, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a paper bank note before hastily shoving it in that smirking goatee face before getting up and storming off down the route required to his next check point.

Walking down the stupidly narrow alleyway he saw Ed leaning against the wall with one foot supporting him with his hands in his pockets. He turned his head to see the General making his way to him, pushing himself off the brickwork with his raised leg he turned to face his superior.

All it needed was a shake of the head from either man before they resumed to their destination.

Turning the final corner they had the house in view, but also Falman. The man drew the short straw, wrapped in blankets and laying on the floor playing the act of a homeless man. According to Havoc and Breda he'd be the best candidate for that job anyway with his scruffy beard and tied back hair, which was now loose. It made Falman look so much older than what he really was.

"Any change sirs?" He shivered out as he wrapped himself tightly in the fabrics surrounding him.

Roy bent down seemingly to hear the man's tragic story.

"Two men, just as you described."

Didn't both checkpoints say no one had been through? Unless one or both of them had messed up, that meant the men were already here and waiting before his unit even took their positions. These two men should have been going about their daily business at both target houses early in the morning, which is why he sent his unit out in the early hours to get in their positions. He wanted to ask Falman more, but anything else would seem too suspicious if anyone was watching or evening listening in.

"Be careful."

Roy nodded to his barely audible words before standing back to his feet, looking down the pathway to their meeting point. Matlock and the other man were in there, waiting for them. He turned to Ed, receiving a nod of approval from the youngest in his squad, he was ready, Roy was ready, now was the time to put one foot in front of the other and make their way to the meeting point.

As Roy positioned himself at the front door Ed looked to the surroundings. His eyes darted to every visible window, not that there weren't many, looking for any signs of being watched. For a house this well kept it was in a very strange place. It was still in the poor district yet there was no sign of repairs, it was pristine with no tile out of place, brickwork patiently cemented together with an expert finish. The temporary brunette looked back down the street where Falman was occupying, not even able to see the man due to the sheer distance they walked. He turned back to Roy, who was awaiting his approval that all was well, of course he couldn't guarantee that, but the area was clear as far as he knew. At this moment in time he wasn't Roy's lover, but the man's personal and only bodyguard. Nodding to his superior he kept a look out as the older man knocked on the door three times boldly.

There was a long pause before the sound of a key turning in the lock alerted both Amestrians before the wooden door began slowly opening. Ed switched his position from behind to in front of the Flame, protecting the next in line of Amestrian Fuhrer ship. His mind suddenly turned to Matlock, boy did Ed want to throw punches. Make the man bleed for what he had done to Roy. Breaking a few bones would help too. But he did promise his love he wouldn't do anything unless it was absolutely necessary and if his or both their lives were in danger.

The face of the person he was very much wanting to maul looked around the gap and looked straight to Ed. "Well...we meet again".

Ed looked to the face that he'd grown to know oh so well. He could feel his fingers twitching. This was the man that beat, tied and cut his beloved. This was the man that nearly killed Mustang, regardless if it was a test of loyalty or not. His muscles tensed, his hand curling into a fist, but he would not retaliate. As much as he wanted some sort of revenge for what happened to the man behind him. He promised Roy, he promised to remain professional.

"And what do I owe you for this unexpected visi-" He opened the door further revealing his entire self as he lent to the side to see Roy. "Ah just as I thought. I thought you were the other man back at the house, but I wasn't completely certain." Giving off a friendly smile just before his face was struck.

Ed lunged at him the punch making Matlock stumble back, he didn't give the older man any time to recover before lunging once more, punching the man again, sending him stumbling against the wall.

Well that promise lasted long.

He landed a couple of more strikes to his torso before forcing the older man's arms up behind his back. It was proving difficult to keep him there when there were two people trying to fight him off.  
One arm wrapped him diagonally over his shoulder whilst another tightly around his waist, whilst a completely different pair tried to loosen his grip on the Drachman. Someone was yelling at him, but it wasn't registering. He continued to place more pressure to the limb in his hand. It was working as Matlock gave out a pained cry the closer and closer his arm was to breaking. He could end his misery instantly, but he wanted it to linger like how he did with Roy.

"Ed stop it!" Roy's words finally got through to him as he released his grip and was dragged away back outside the house. The older man's gripped remained when he whispered quietly in his subordinates ear "Starting a fight isn't going to help the situation." He looked back to see Falman had moved closer, looking cautiously, but remaining where he was. If anything were to happen right now they did have back up.

"But what he did to you." Gritting his teeth with eyes still fixated on a recovering Matlock.

"I know how you feel right now, believe me, but we are here for answers, not to start another brawl."

Matlock stood straight and rubbed his jaw, moving it from side to side before waving his arm to get feeling back to the limb. "Okay, I deserved that, so I'll let that slide. Doing what I did to a general is rather unforgivable, but I had my reasons. Those reasons are why you are here right now and not dead in a river." Slumping to one of the seat at the dining table just out of view of the two Amestrians.

The mention of the river made Roy tighten his grip on Ed for a brief second before slowly releasing his subordinate as the Elric calmed down somewhat. He slowly approached the door once more and looked in "I want him to do a thorough sweep of the building." Still a reasonable request even though Ed had practically stormed the building with the general in tow.

"If we had weapons don't you think we would have used them by now when he attacked him!?" Guy angrily shouted at them and was on the way of approaching the two Amestrians when Matlock grabbed his wrist to stop him doing anything stupid.

"It's fine, let them do what they want." Matlock accepted Roy's request without question and much to his friends dismay.

Ed took the lead, walking in like it was his own place. The floorboards creaked with every step as he proceeded further in. To the his left was the kitchen, a small area with every cupboard wide open, obviously a way of saying that no one and nothing was hidden inside, to his right was Frazen Matlock sitting calmly at the small dining table. He couldn't help but have a feeling that they were expecting them on this very day.

"Hands where I can see them and both of you back up against the wall." Fullmetal demanded, his eyes still raged, but his body had calmed down to a degree.

Both men obliged and stood next to each other with their hands up in the air whilst Ed patted them down and checked every pocket.

"We have nothing on us!" The card trickster pleaded as his being was searched

"It's fine Guy, standard military procedure with someone as high up as him, both of them in all honesty." Matlock stayed completely still as Ed turned his attentions to him. The temporary brunette used more force on the man then what he did with Guy.

"Don't you dare move." Fullmetal commanded as he did a full sweep of the kitchen and dining area. Patting his hand under the counters, cupboards, chairs and table for any hidden blades or guns. "Clear in here." He called out to his superior officer.

Roy took one last look at all the visible windows, just like Ed did only a minute ago. His sight finishing back on the alley where Falman was. When that door is shut behind him his intelligence officer would be even closer.

Ed kept his eye on the two men stationary against the wall as the General walked in and quietly shut the door.

"Carry on." Roy gave the order to his subordinate, who began to search the rest of the house whilst he kept watch over the two Drachmans. Matlock's eyes stayed staring straight ahead, his back straight to attention, legs firmly together, unlike his counterpart. Every little noise he heard from the other rooms his head would turn either to Matlock or Mustang himself.

"Is this really necessary?" Guy began to protest as he heard some sort of metallic clattering in the next room. "I've told you there is nothing here!"

"Guy." Just his own name and the man grew quiet again, but the signs of irritation were clear on his face for all to see.

A few more minutes and Ed returned dusting off his coat and re adjusting his gloves "All clear."

"Take a seat gentleman." Mustang graciously pointed to the table with his whole arm, following suit and taking the opposite side. Ed stood close beside his commanding officer looking every part as the bodyguard.

Matlock returned to his seat once more, slouching with his head resting in his hand. "I apologise for Guy's outburst, he's not experienced military searches before, well Amestrian anyway. So we both know why you are here, you want answers. Mainly consisting of even though I'm working for a rebel fraction, plotting to destroy the very country you are from, I know who you both are and yet you are still alive.  
Well it's clearly obvious I'm not your run of the mill Drachman. Where do I begin..." He now switched his stance, seating properly in his chair with his fingers intertwined on the table "Frazen Matlock is dead. I killed him and took on his identity."

What shocked Roy and Ed wasn't that fact this now unknown man had just admitted this crime, it was the fact that his whole demeanour and voice had completely changed, like a flick of a switch. A rather average voice had turned calmer, slightly deeper, but not by much. Drachman accent long but disappeared, replaced by another.

"You're Amestrian?" Mustang kept a calm exterior, but inside he could have raged.

"I like to believe I still am. Name's Naython Guilford originally Western Command State Military, under the orders of Colonel Richard Knile.

So not only was he Amestrian, but he's military _and_ undercover? The name of either the man in front of him or his so called commanding officer where known to the Flame Alchemist. If he was undercover then surely he should have known before they even set foot out of Amestris. As much as this could be good news to him and his unit the betrayal of Henry was still perfectly fresh in his mind. He wasn't going to let his guard down so easily this time and Ed wouldn't anyway.

"Rank?"

"Last time I checked it was Major, but that was a long long time ago. But it's the only rank I have knowingly accomplished."

"You only accomplished?" There was only one explanation to one person can be a major without going through the lower ranks "You're a state alchemist!?"

"Was. Was a state alchemist. Haven't left Drachma in seventeen years so no doubt my title was removed and I've probably made it to the list of the dead."

"Care to explain how you ended up in this situation?"

"Joined the elite state alchemists at the tender age of fourteen, the youngest there was. Put straight into the medical corps under the title of The Lifeblood Alchemist, I could repair nerves, veins, bones, you name it. Could even attach a severed limb like nothing ever happened. I was a highly valuable asset to the military for nine years, then came along the Ishvalen civil war. Instead of going to the front lines like I should have I was ordered to Drachma, to 'keep a look out for unrest', to make sure they weren't planning a surprise attack. I never understood it and neither did any of the others who were ordered to Aerugo and Creta. Hearing of how many died during those seven long years I could have saved so many, yet I couldn't leave my post no matter how many times I protested. I remember hearing my superior met an unfortunate end on the battlefield because he was pushed to the front lines for trying to help me return."

The Lifeblood Alchemist was a name either Generals had ever come across. Someone with that amount of skill and knowledge should not have just been thrown to the side when he was most needed. Mind you this was no ordinary war so it was no surprise that he was taken away and left to rot.

"I thought my hell would be over when there was the announcement of Bradley's death reached here. The man deserved it for what he done. But I've got myself in a situation where I cannot just walk away, not that the boarder would let me pass anyway."

"Can you tell us more about Henry and this group you're associated with?"

Guilford nodded "I did enrol in Drachman military, that part was true, but as a message decoder. I was the only one since the others met...unfortunate accidents." Looking over to Guy. "I anonymously sent messages back to the Briggs fort regarding Drachman moves and heavy altering any Amestrian messages that could prove fatal. There I remained for a few more years I had to leave quickly, my cover was going to be blown, they didn't pin point me, but they got word that messages were being relayed so I made sure I was discharged dishonourably, had my way with the commanding officer's wife in his own office. A couple of years later I had two men knocking at my door, they somehow knew of my Amestrian roots and asked me if I'd join their resistance movement against the very country I came from. Of course I agreed. Henry joined a year after me, but he had been in Drachma much longer than that. They seemed to be scouting the corrupt undercover Amestrians. If they refused they were murdered, which is probably why you had the unfortunate luck of having Henry as your contact. Originally it was just bashing and pointless kidnapping, now it's suddenly turned into something very serious."

"The collapse of Central command."

"That was just an experiment."

Ed could feel the rage once again brewing inside him again and no doubt Roy was feeling the same way. "That was a demolition! You don't destroy the central command of the Amestris Military as an experiment! We were in that building when it fell!"

"I'm the one that got Richard Prassen to tone down the explosives, it would have been so much worse and no one in that building died!" As the two men stared at each other it was clear that neither were going to be on friendly terms throughout their working time together.

"So what do you mean by something serious if that was...an experiment" Roy quickly needed the conversation to move on before Ed thought to lunge at him once more and Falman comes bursting in from all the noise they were creating.

"You've seen the weapons arsenal that is growing by the hour, after all it was you two who left that house the other day. They are going into Amestris with highly powerful explosives as well as guns and destroying the country from the inside."

"They'll never get past any boarder control without one of the five command centres being notified."

"But that's the thing, I don't know how it's going to be executed, but they are incredibly confident."

"Let us speak to Prassen"

Guilford shook his head "Him and Scott James have been killed, both were working for me. I'm sorry, I did all I could to protect them. But Berry was having none of it. He wanted fatalities and explosions, instead he got a controlled demolition."

"Berry?"

"Nicolas Berry, the guy in charge of this whole thing, you could say the founder of this group. Barely makes an appearance unless it's important."

Ed remembered back to the time in the park, the first time he saw Guilford as Matlock. A Nicholas had appeared to tell the group that Harrison Byfield had been killed, could that have been the same man as was being mentioned now?

Naython continued "He's got a good knowledge of Amestrian military so I'm guessing he's been around the block. I've only seen him about three times I've been here. There are three people that pass down his orders, a big built guy and twins. I say twins I think it's just a lie and is one person, never see them together.  
Gavin Hawke is average sized, but built like a tank and Drachman. Used to be the leader of an old faction whose cause was to blackmail, torture and even assault their targets. Ferren Dewry and Trex Dewry. I've never two of the same together so suspect just one person, I know for sure this person is Amestrian."

"Nicholas Berry. The founder and leader is blind in one eye from an unfortunate accident with a cigarette butt and a knife. Afraid to also say their names are aliases. I've never been able to find out who they really are."

So these were the men Roy and his unit should have been pursuing all this time. The three plotting to destroy the very country he was helping rebuild from the dark times under the rule of a Homunculus. It was all coming together now, closer to completing the mission, closer to clearing a threat to Amestris, closer to going home.

"And Henry?"

"Henry...I honestly don't know what he was playing at. He only told me about you two, if he told anyone else Amestris would have been the last of their problems. He'd been acting like that for the past year, I couldn't tell which side he was on. Maybe he wasn't on either side and it was some kind of game to him. There were a couple of undercover guys, just like you two, Henry was the contact. Three weeks later they were dead, Henry sold them out. Another small group of four, Henry provided them with names and they carried out their mission and killed their target, who was one of the higher ups. Others that I know of on both sides have just disappeared I can't even prove it but I knew he was behind it. If I hadn't have gotten to him you two and any others that came with you would have been taken out by this group or the military."

Targets were set in stone, three men to capture and take back to be put on trial. It was all falling together nicely, but now was the tricky part - how to capture them in the first place. Berry was going to be a problem unless they storm whichever building he is in. With Guilford's help the other two may be an easier catch. Then once they've been captured how were they going to make their escape?

"I'm afraid that's not the end of it." Guildford interrupts Roy's train of thought.

"What do you mean?"

There is one more. None of us have seen him, but he's there. Nicholas is not top dog, so to speak."

Mustang suddenly got a really bad feeling "Where?"

"...In the military ranks, back in Amestris."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sincerest apologies that it has taken me over a month to get the latest chapter out. Writer's block and real life love to get in the way. The good news is that I'm 3/4 finishing the next chapter so I shall upload that as soon as I can!


	22. Chapter 22

Ed looked to his side. It wasn't the stairwell being in silence that bothered him, it was the man sitting beside him staring down at the crumbling steps, with his head bowed and resting on his hands. Silence from Roy Mustang wasn't uncommon, sometimes it was a godsend when Ed was younger, but he'd been quiet ever since they left the meeting. Even when the group reconvened it was the ex alchemist that did all the talking. It was like Roy was in a trance. It was obvious as to why the man was in this state, finding out all your hard work at removing the corruption from the military ranks was in vain would be a shock to anyone's system. The silence was killing Ed, but what could he do? Everyone has tried speaking to him and all that had come out was a grunt or hum. Positive or negative, none knew, they just left the General alone with his thoughts. Console him? Ed hadn't really done much of that in his life, at least the physical aspect anyway. When Winry found out the truth behind her parents death she just latched on to him in an inconsolable state, he just let her release her tears until there was no more to fall. But Roy wasn't crying, heck he had never seen the man cry. He couldn't tell the man that everything was going to be fine, it already wasn't. How do you console someone who's work had gone to waste? Why was he here with him on his watch? Was this just another place to think?

Ed stood, stretching his legs before walking down a couple for steps and kneeling, completely blocking Roy of any view of the dull, grey concrete. Their eyes connected and, for a fleeting moment, nothing was said. The two men just stared intently at each other before Ed broke the spell.

"You did the best you could."

"Because we weren't thorough enough someone is out there walking down the corridors, sitting at their own desk and laughing at us. Just as the military was beginning gain trust of the citizens again someone sends us on a wild goose chase."

Roy had clenched his fist, but somehow managed to restrain himself from practically punching through the table in anger when Matlock revealed the in ranks traitor. For so long he and the others worked incredibly hard to remove the corruption and deceit in the military ranks. This was supposed to be a mission where they take the criminals back to Amestris for interrogation, these people who had turned on his homeland. Now there was one extra target to add to the list, he still had a mission to do here in dismantling whatever group this was and then he's got to find out who in Amestris is in charge of all this. Everyone who was associated with people like Bradley, Edison and the other sick and twisted officers were all checked out, questioned and some of them even sentenced. But clearly someone had escaped through the web of information. But on the other hand could this be something completely separate? Those people wanted eternal life, could these targets want something else?

"No, you did all you could with the information given, nothing is perfect. As much as I don't like Matlock, it is our only lead now. This isn't just a wild goose chase, we are still dismantling the group." Roy removed his hands from his face to rest them on his thighs. "We focus our attention where we are now, the quicker we get this done, the quicker we can get back home."

Roy nodded, the younger man had a very strong point. If he focused on the real man behind the scenes he'd lose all concentration on the matter at hand, something which could cost the unit their lives if he wasn't careful. He leaned forward whilst his hand placed behind the younger man's head, pulling him closer. Their lips connected, lingered, until he felt Ed's tongue run across his bottom lip, now giving the older man permission to make the kiss deeper. It was a moment of bliss in such a tense and dangerous mission. Ed shuffled himself as close as he could, snaking one of his hands around the back of his superior's head, allowing his fingertips to disappear into the false coloured locks.

Neither man couldn't wait to return to Amestris. They couldn't wait to spend more time together in the privacy of eithers home, of course their relationship would still have to remain hidden, but it was only a minor problem in their eyes. Even though the two men adored each other they didn't stare at one another like a smitten couple or joined at the hip. Apart from this small time window they were in complete work mode.

Ed pulled back before their embrace got too hot and heavy. Was it frustrating? Yes, of course it was, but nothing further could happen here, no matter how much he wanted it to. He's waited long for Roy's acceptance, he can wait a bit longer to take their relationship further. He couldn't resist placing his lips once more to his love's, even if it was only for a brief second, before averting his eyes from the false blue in front of him

"Guilford, Matlock or whatever he calls himself. After what he did to you, regardless if it was a test or not. I know I promised not to do anything, but my body just went on it's own and I jeopardised the meeting and our safety."

Roy cupped the side of the Elric's face, before the younger man could look away.

"Ed..if I was in your shoes, honestly, I would have done the same. We can just be grateful that he was understanding and willing to continue to co operate with us."

Something was still playing on Roy's mind though, something just didn't sit right. Maybe it was just his trust in people, maybe he was just being over cautious after the whole Henry façade. But right now him being here with Ed was all that mattered.  
The younger man spun himself round and sat on the step lower to Roy between his legs and lent against his superior. Sure the concrete wasn't comfortable, but Roy definitely was. He relaxed into the older man's warmth as a protective arm wrapped over his shoulder, gently resting on the opposite side of his waist as Mustangs head rested onto his.

There they remained until one had to go, a parting kiss turning into several.

xXx

Four days had passed since the meeting with Matlock / Guilford and there was still no news. Patience was starting to wear thin and the unit were beginning to grow restless. Instead of going out altogether it was now a single man patrol through the key areas. Ed and Roy went out more frequently and for longer periods in the hope of new information. There was the odd occasion that the two of them would patrol together like it was on this very evening. They had been out together for over an hour before deciding to sit on one of the park's many benches, not next to each other, but with a fair gap in between. Ed stretched his arms along the back rest and slouched in his seat as Roy kept his arms folded and remained upright.

"This is getting tiresome."

"But we need to be available in case any new information arises."

Ed casually looked around at the passers by. Roy did have a very valid point, Matlock and Guy didn't know where they were holding up, well they hoped not, and them being out and about in their most frequented areas was the best possible chance of finding them. They could walk past both the target houses, but they couldn't stay around there, especially of what Roy said about the other two men who were with them when Henry was uncovered. What happened to those other two men was something that they forgot to bring up at the meeting, which side were they on? What happened to the one that attacked Roy? Were those two even still alive?  
At least being in the park they could sit and relax for a bit in each other's company without any interruptions or worry that they were going to be caught in a loving embrace like back at the stairwell. Not that they were going to do anything relationship wise since they were in work mode. Besides public displays of affection weren't his thing anyway, he'd rather keep that all private. He mentally sighed. Why was he thinking about this now? All this thought should be on hold until they get back to Amestris. Waiting was never his strong point, but just being with Roy made it bearable. He placed his elbow on the arm of the bench to perch his head on. There weren't many things he could talk about to Mustang in the situation they are now. No discussing the mission in case someone was in ear shot, and he couldn't discuss anything about Amestris, which was everything else on his mind. All he could do is sit there in silence.

Roy watched every person out of the corner of his eyes, in hope that someone would grab his attention meaning more information. But there was only so much sitting doing nothing on a park bench before someone becomes suspicious of your actions, and especially in an area where criminals congregate to discuss suggestions and tactics. He took out his pocket watch to see that enough time had been spent here and stood to move, only the person sort of next to him didn't move along with him. He turned to his side and couldn't help a small smile escape at the side of his mouth as he came to realise his subordinate had fallen asleep. Not the most comfortable position, but draws less attention. He needed to wake him up, but couldn't the many ways he wanted to, that would have to be left for their return to Amestris - all legitimately and non sexual he might add. He quickly looked around and found a discarded newspaper on the floor. Quickly picking it up he returned to his seat and began to read it. As much as he wanted to wake the younger man up he did look so peaceful there. Five to ten minutes wasn't going to hurt, the natural blonde deserved it after the past few days.

" 'scuse me, could you move up a bit?"

He didn't get very far into his reading as the voice interrupted him, not giving him much time to shuffle next to Ed before the person climbed onto the seat to sit on the back rest. How hard was it for people to sit down properly instead of wiping their muddy shoes all over the wooden seat? He didn't even bother to look at the person, making eye contact with people usually meant you want a fight and he's been in more than enough of them already.

Another five or so minutes in a piece of paper dropped into the General's line of vision with two basic words

_Follow me_

Roy turned just as the rude person jumped from the bench to realise that it was Guy. Now he really had to wake Ed up, and fast, but how? Several scenarios drifted through his brain, each passing him by like a car on the road before coming to the only suitable option. He mentally apologised before elbowing the ex alchemist in the midriff, quickly getting up and beginning to walk before the younger man would no doubt retaliate. It was the several curse words including the fabled 'Bastard' that indicated Ed had followed.

This time they weren't led through the labyrinth of alleyways, instead they were now led into mother nature, a rather dense forest. Fighting their way through the thick undergrowth Guy finally stopped and addressed them.

"They are moving out in 3 days from tomorrow."

"Where from?"

"We still haven't been told."

Ed let out a breathed laugh "Then what use is this to us?"

"I can assure you Naython is doing the best he can to find out the relevant information for you, he's being kept in the dark just like everyone else. As soon as he heard when the plot was going to be executed he sent me out here to tell you. As soon as I get any more information I'll come find you."

He didn't give the others a chance to reply before quickly running back the way he came. Ed was going to go after him, but the General held him back.

"We need to wait for a bit as to not arouse suspicion."

They may or may not have been seen following Guy into the dense undergrowth, but if they followed him out they would be under clear suspicion if anyone was watching. The best they could do now was wait and then leave the woodland separately, meeting back at the safe house.

"We can't wait for Guilford, we need to find out where they are leaving from now so we can come up with a corresponding plan."

Ed had a point, and a very strong point at that. All is fair with waiting for Guilford to access the relevant information, but if he was in the dark as much as they were he may not even know anything until they were leaving, and then what? His unit rush back to Amestris in a hope of cutting them off?

Roy knew they might as well brainstorm whilst they wait for the appropriate time. "We know that they can't go topside. Grumman made sure there were extra soldiers relocated to the checkpoints."

"But what if whoever is calling the shots back home brainwashed them or something? You saw yourself what happened with the others when Bradley got to them. They could turn on the others.."

"I have every faith in the Fuhrer."

"So what you are saying is we are going to look for them in the sewers?"

"Deep underground, a multichannel network and I wouldn't be surprised if there was a route into Amestris in there. Guy said they were leaving in three days, he didn't say when they were going to arrive."

"You think they are walking all the way there with guns and explosives? That would take weeks!"

"A small price to pay for entering a country undetected." He takes a quick glance to his pocket watch. "We'd best move."

Ed watched his superior walk away from him, or at least try and make his way through the undergrowth. His sewers idea was good, but if you want to destroy something you've been planning for months or even years you'd want to see it topple quickly. Leave it too long, like they did with central command, it gets rebuilt. The total numbers of this group were unknown, but from what he's seen with all the crate carrying there were definitely more than around the ten people he knew of. Carrying all that collected equipment would be a strain on anyone, they had to be using motorised transportation to get from A to B. There was no way that they could go through the sewers. So how were they going to do it? Amestris' boarders were well protected according to Roy so underground was their only option. Underground, but not sewers... It was that very moment another way presented itself to him.

"What about the storm drain?" Roy wasn't that far away at all so there was no doubt the older man could hear him from where he was. And indeed he stopped in his tracks, turning back round to look at him.  
"You know, small alcove where we slept for a few days, you lighting a fire to keep us warm. Place was absurdly large, enough for motor vehicles to pass through." He explained his theory to his commanding officer.

And Ed's theory was a rather impressive one. "But the noise of them passing though the town would be noticed."

"No one would be able to pinpoint it. Since it's underground there is only one place they'd suspect."

"The sewers."

The ex alchemist smiled "Feel like a little exploring? A trip down memory lane so to speak where all this began?"

The commanding General quickly made his way back to his subordinate "We don't know how long it goes on for, it's risky if it's a dead lead."

"So is your theory, but we know it would have to be near the two target houses so it whittles our search down."

xXx

After much deliberation with the rest of the squad Roy reluctantly gave up his position of searching the storm drain with Ed with the need to be available in case any more information was to be received. It was now time for Havoc to redeem himself, being another skilled hand to hand combat as well as firearms Mustang put all his trust in his faithful friend and colleague. He watched as the two men descended the steps, Ed giving him a glimpse every now and again until the sound of the lower door echoed in the stairwell, signalling their departure. As much as he wanted to go with the ex alchemist he didn't want anyone else in the unit to be exposed to Guilford and Guy, two was enough and those were powerful names to suddenly turn against. It was unknowing how long they would take and darkness had almost fallen. But he knew one thing for sure, he wasn't going to rest until they returned safely.

Knowing what were the manhole covers leading to the sewers were easy, but to the storm drain things were providing to be much more difficult. Ed had explained to Havoc the shape and size of the one he and Roy opened, but finding a cover like that seemed to be never ending. Ed was doing a half patrol, going from one house to the next, whilst looking at the metal covers, but nothing that stood out and nothing to symbolise that there was any form of drainage nearby like a gap between the road and kerb. It may just be different to the ones in Amestris but it was more than enough to arouse suspicion that that very tunnel was more then just to assists the overflow of water. With nothing more to go on both men reconvened after finding nothing of any use. With no clues Ed had to finally give in, and began to head towards the only entrance he knew, not exactly happy that it would mean this would take longer then he and anyone else wanted.

The Red Zone, the no go area, Roy had set up after they reconvened. The public house where it all began was the epicentre, the ring around this area was where everyone had to avoid. But for Ed and Roy there was an outer ring, an extended space, due to the times they were on their own surviving in the small corridor. It covered the bars, shops, restaurants and the Inn they were supposed to have been staying. Now the ex alchemist had to tread into that imaginary area, and be on his highest guard. It was unknown to the him and Havoc how well they would be noticed in this part, in all honesty they were possibly the worst two to be handling this, Ed was the one that was always risking himself stealing food and water whilst Havoc was the one that started this whole mess. But Roy had insisted that if he couldn't go Havoc would have to take his place.

Ed kept to the shadows as they arrived at the inn. It was a good thing it had turned dark as Ed carefully began to retrace his steps, it was better going through the route the same as it was then and not in broad daylight. There were times they had to stop either to discreetly hide from a passing soldier or for the younger man to decide whether he went down one side street to the next. There may have been a couple of wrong turns, but no one is perfect.

Turning the corner what he saw was as clear as that very evening. A slightly more open area, a street lamp lighting the area where they would have been, no cover to hide. This was where Ed had knocked out the soldier who spotted them that night. He knew where they were and it wouldn't be that long till they reached their intended target. Hurrying their pace Ed did a complete re enactment from that moment, much to Havoc's amusement, as he jumped over fences to 'hide', suddenly turning direction to hide behind some trash cans before arriving at their destination. Ed didn't hesitate as he immediatly reached for the handle and pulled the thick metal up from it's resting place. The tortured groan didn't deter the two men as Havoc quickly descended the ladder swiftly followed by Ed.

Home sweet home, as Ed lit the candle inside the lantern they brought along with them, with Roy's newest lighter of course. Natural light was scarce as the usually bright moon was now covered in thick cloud, leaving the candle as their only resource. Holding the light in front of him he scanned the area seeing the once familiar sight of dull concrete and dead undergrowth that had dropped through whatever crevice it could find.

"Which way?" Havoc whispered, which turned out to be a very good question. Sure there were only two ways to choose from, but which way would take them to the vicinity of their target area? Making their way here was full of twists and turns, but at least Ed knew the general direction of which they travelled, unlike when him and Falman went to look for Roy.

Not far from their position was the very place him and Roy had stayed for a number of days. Ed couldn't resist taking a glance as they walked past, now no evidence of them staying there, but it was one good memory that he wouldn't forget in a hurry.

There were several dead end passages just like that one as they continued through the tunnel, each as empty as the last. What was more concerning than the fact that there were even side passages in the first place was that the main body of the tunnel seemed to keep going in a straight line, yes the candle wasn't giving of a massive amount of light, it was just enough for them to see where they were treading. But a slight glow in a pitch black tunnel would alert anyone who'd happen to be here, if anyone was here, which turned out to be true.

"Why don't we get someone in again, instead of taking all this?"

The two Amestrians quickly hid in one of the side passages and quickly blew the candle out. With their own source of light now extinguished the glow from whatever the persons ahead where using provided a stronger glow, just enough so Ed and Havoc knew where the other was, but not well enough to see properly.

"We tried that and the conclusion wasn't what I was promised. I wanted an explosion, not a controlled demolition. Vic said those two were the best for the job, lies, they were cowards. I don't want anyone else from that sorry excuse for a country anywhere near these. "

"It's incredibly dangerous having all these here."

"Let me worry about that, all you need to do is make sure these things are going to keep working."

At this moment in time the two Amestrians were trapped. If they tried to make their way back there was a high chance they would get spotted, not being able to properly see the debris scattered on the floor. Small sounds echoed with great force in this tunnel and they didn't want to risk their lives. The men ahead of them were clearly whispering, but to Ed and Jean it was as clear as day. It was cold, but not as much as he'd expect meaning there wasn't any sort of open grate nearby. The best they could do now was to sit it out, listen to the two men until they left. Well they'd hope they leave and not stay down here until they actually leave for Amestris.

It had to have been hours. Him and Havoc took it in turns to stay awake whilst the other slept. If they'd known this would happen they would have brought a few extra layers of clothing. Both men keeping close for warmth, with no fire, but not getting _too_ close, the extent of what would happen with him and Roy. He couldn't tell what time it was by the time the noises stopped.

A dull dull clunk echoing throughout the tunnel told the two Amestrians that the grate they used to get in had now been shut. Slowly rising to his feet Ed carefully crept to the end of the passageway that turned into their hideaway and brought his head to turn the corner, darkness. He looked the way they originally came so see a beam of daylight far in the distance. Silence shrouded him, even his breath was too loud in his ears. They'd wait a bit longer on the off chance there was someone still nearby before investigating, Ed reaching into his pocket and pulling out Roy's lighter, spinning it around his fingers several times before Havoc passed him the lantern, and lit the candle inside. The warm glow wasn't very warming physically, but a welcome sight.

Taking the lead Havoc cautiously turned the corner, letting the lantern to once more lead the way. Both men were tired and freezing cold but the end was in sight, Ed knew, Havoc knew, and Roy would know it once they return with their findings.  
The dim light was reflected off something in the distance, four circular discs. The closer they got the more was unveiled. Vehicles, more precisely Jeeps, military issue. Havoc pulled back the tarpaulin that covered the front two vehicles. A Pile of cloth bags were revealed, neatly stacked at opposite ends in the back . Havoc placed the lantern in the space between as Ed climbed on to inspect the furthest pile. Jean cautiously unwrapped the items inside one of the bags to reveal groups of red sticks tied together, dynamite.

"Well if they want an explosion.." Throwing the item to Ed "..best thing for the job don't you think?"

Ed inspected the explosive. A basic, stereotypical incendiary device, all fuses for each explosive were interlinked with one another. "Light the fuse and run like hell."

Neither were explosive experts so they couldn't say how big or size of blast just one of these could cause, but the bag was filled to the brim with these. It was something they were definitely not taking lightly.  
There was no doubt now that this area was the dispatch point. It also meant if there was a fight, like there no doubt would be, as they try to stop these people from making it over the boarder. But with the new found knowledge of the kind of explosives the group were carrying it meant Roy's flame alchemy would be impossible to use. Well that was unless he wanted to kill them all as well as his own unit...and the people living on the surface. Mustang's accuracy was right on target, but if the subject was moving, say a car chase, one wrong pot hole or a slight turn would mean the difference between a successful hit or a devastating one.

Ed turned his attention to the bags in front of him. He knew that they would turn up, he did find one after all, but in this very bag were four weapons. Two rifles and two handguns. He couldn't help but let a out a series of curse words has he handed one of the larger guns to Havoc. If anyone knew about these, apart from Hawkeye, it was him.

Carefully inspecting the weapon in his hands the older man gently jumped the gun in his hands to test the weight. Next he dropped the magazine to reveal it fully loaded and replaced it back in the slot. Taking aim down the sights before looking back at the weapon.

"Remarkably like the M14 we use. Magazines are larger, weapon slightly lighter." He ran his fingertips over a strange raised platform on the barrel. "Anything else in that bag?"

Carefully rummaging through the bag "A tonne of ammo and this." Ed pulled out a rectangular reinforced box and handed it to Havoc. The older man quickly opened it and inspected the item before attaching it to the gun with a click. He now took aim down the added on scope sight.

"Sniper?"

"Can't say, could just be better sights for the rifle. Snipers are much heavier." He drops the magazine once more to inspect the bullets "Larger ammo too. Sadly I can't shoot it to find out for you."

Ed jumped over the side of the Jeep and back onto concrete. Taking the lantern with them they inspected the other vehicles to find the same amount of bags in each one.

"Well it's clear that they'll split up once on Amestrian territory. Could be two to three people per car." He turned to the ladder that the men climbed out of. They had to know where they were, where the group were disembarking from.

He gave the lantern back to Havoc, since it was daylight on the surface, and quickly ascended the ladder. Making sure one of his legs were firmly wrapped around the poles he gently nudged the grate upwards with two hands. The daylight shone in, blinding both men as their eyes re adjusted to the blinding light. Ed looked down to see Havoc looking straight at him before he continued lifting the heavy metal from it's resting place. The first thing that came into view was something he'd never actually suspect, a wooden floor. He paused, listening for movement or talking before continuing. Couches lined either side of the room, a small coffee table on a colourful rug in between the seats. Several coats hung on the stand by the door, the place so clean and tidy. Why did this place seem so familiar to him? It then hit him as his eyes found a bookcase to his right. On top of this bookcase was a vase, Ed remembered it since it was the most ugliest thing he had ever seen. This was bad...really bad, and he needed to leave now.

Quickly descending the ladder there was only one more thing left to do. They now needed to know where the vehicles entered the tunnel in the first place. Easier said then done when fifty meters behind the cars was a solid concrete wall, but that could not have meant that they would have reversed from the entrance all the way here.

"It doesn't make sense.." Havoc scratched his head in bewilderment.

"I know it doesn't, but we need to get heading back, we've not got much time left to come up with a plan of action. We'd best hope the General got some more information during our stay here."

Both men took a bag containing the guns and ammunition from the front line of Jeeps as well as taking one of the bound together dynamite. Ed took one last look in the direction of the wall behind the transport. As the dim light began to fade he saw something, only for a millisecond, but the image immediatly imprinted itself in his mind.

When he gets back to Amestris his work would still be far from over...


	23. The calm before the storm

Ed leant against the wall as Havoc showcased what they found in the tunnel. Of course the task of checking the weapons fell to Riza, even though Jean had checked them previously, they could now both do it properly in the daylight. Both weapons specialists discussed everything from the size and width of the barrel, to the length of the gun, weight, ammo...everything that you could possibly compare and contrast. It was informative to Ed, even though he'd never used a gun in his life. Why would he when he had Alchemy? That lance, and the blade he transmuted from his automail were the only weapons he ever needed. To the two gun experts this was a dream come true, a new toy to play with, so to speak. All that was missing was a firing range for them to test the aim and fire power.

Everyone apart from him were crowded around the itinerary, well almost everyone. He looked around the room to try and locate the blonde hair, blue eyed General, the one person that he so desperately needed to be there to talk to about his own findings was no where to be seen.

"Where's Mustang?"

"Out in the hope of some information." Breda called over the Havoc / Hawkeye chatter, before turning his attentions to the extra item in Ed's bag. "What the" Holding up the dynamite for all to see.

"Bags full to the brim of that on each Jeep." Havoc glanced up before focusing his attention back to the rifle in front of him as he brought out the scope and securing it on top of the gun.

Ed stood in the doorway, trying his best to concentrate on what the others were saying in front of him, but he couldn't. He needed to find Roy and tell him as soon as possible. Alerting the rest of the unit as to what he was doing he quickly made his way out of the building and back onto the streets.

Easier said then done.

The term 'Like finding a needle in a haystack' best summed up his search. Even though there were five spots they always made sure to wait for a few minutes he was no where to be found. It could just be that Guy had found him first and he led the General to a completely different area. Fullmetal wasn't exactly happy that Roy went off on his own, since the last time he could have very well gotten himself killed, but since he was trapped in the tunnel there wasn't another option. Him and Roy made sure that Guilford and Guy knew only of them and not the rest of the unit, to keep them safe. Regardless of friend or foe the exact numbers that had arrived with them remained at him and Roy.

Five minutes at each of the main destinations turned up no sign of Roy Mustang. A thought crossed that he may have gone to Henry or Matlock's houses, that thought was immediatly ridiculed. No way in hell would Roy even want to go near Henry's for obvious reasons and he wouldn't go to Matlock's without back up, without him. Without any other option he returned to the park, walking around the entirely of the area twice before sitting down. There was always that chance that Roy had already got the information and headed back to the safe house, but surely he would have noticed him at some part of his single patrol since all the main areas are a short distance from each other.

Ed's trail of thought suddenly ground to a halt as he looked out further into the park. Walking towards him was not the man he wanted to see, but the next best thing being Guy. He watched the Drachman slowly make his way closer, but stopped and quickly scouted the area. Something really didn't seem right as he quickly went down the pathway directly to his right, missing Ed completely. Since it wasn't the way back to the houses Elric decided in a millisecond that he was going to follow him, heading down the path which will merge the two at the end into one. There was only one reasonable explanation that the Drachman was acting that way, desperation. He clearly hadn't found Roy and his time was running out to find either of his contacts before someone would get suspicious of his disappearance.  
If there was another reason he ignored it, determined to get to the man as soon as possible Ed ran half the way up the path to get ahead, taking a much calmer pace as he reached the end of his route.

He waited...

And waited...

...Where was he?

He turned and began to quickly walk down the other path. He could see right down to the other end, where he last saw him, yet Guy was no where in sight. Sure he hadn't even seen the man walk along the route since there was some foliage in the way. It was dense, but not enough to hide in. Not exactly the most discreet and private area to tell him what he technically already knew, apart from the dispatch time. All the way down he examined the foliage through the corner of his eye, but nothing stood out or called out as he walked the entire length back to where he last saw him. Did he turn back round and went somewhere else? Was he just running from place to place?

"Stop that man!"

Ed quickly looked around to find out where the voice had come from.

"He's taken my bag!" A woman screamed at the top of her lungs.

Natural instinct kicked in as he tried to locate the robber who, instead of running past him, ran straight into him, knocking the natural blonde backwards and hard onto the path. Not letting this get the better of him he gripped the person who had fallen on top of him. Grabbing his coat tight the other person tried to push, pull and twist himself free to no avail Ed was determined not to let the robber go, but his head had other ideas. The dull pain at the back of his head now surged to an unbearable stabbing causing Ed's grip to weaken. The man broke free but, before he could make his getaway, someone else had caught him. Who, he didn't know, he couldn't even properly see them. Everything was just a blur, he could hear shouting but it all sounded the same. What he could hear were the sounds of the scuffle very close to him, the grit scraping along the hard floor as the two people tried to keep upright. His head hurt, really hurt, it was like the hangovers he used to get after a nights drinking, but ten times worse. He rolled out the way of the tussle onto the grass, laying face down with his hands cradling that one spot of impact on the back of his head...

The only use he could be at the moment was if he'd go out and find Guy on his own. If he sat there any longer he would go mad. Barely slept anyway since he was concerned as to why Ed and Havoc hadn't come back from their scouting and, when they did come back, the youngest of his unit will be rather annoyed that he didn't go about the daily business he needed to do. So here he was, left with his thoughts in a little alcove adjacent to the park. It wasn't one of the intended spots but it gave the general a clear view of the people leaving and entering the recreational grounds. It was also a good shaded place since the sun decided it was going to shine like it was summer, even though the cold still bit. It was just like someone decided to shine a spotlight in your face, just to intentionally blind you. He could feel a headache coming on just by being out there for so long. He hadn't seen Ed in over ten hours, usually that was a small time frame, but now it seemed like an eternity. Mustang had hoped that he'd get the last bit, and most important bit, of information needed as quickly as possible so he could go and find his trusted colleagues. There was no way he was leaving anyone behind, especially in an enemy land. It did give him hope that they had come across something, but then they would have come straight back, but that was depending on how long they walked through the tunnel to get to the destination. Highly unlikely that they got caught, and Roy was confident that wasn't the case.  
He was about to make his way to the next area when out of the corner he saw a figure, the very person he was looking for and no doubt that person was looking for him, by how he quickly rushed by. Mustang knew he couldn't just walk up to him so he tailed him, or tried to. The task was impossible, there were just too many people, no matter how hard he tried to get closer more people pushed and shoved their way in front of him. It was truly astonishing that, like in Amestris, when the sun comes out _everybody_ has to come out. Though in Amestris it was actually hot, here it's a little warmer but still rather chilly. He had to give up the pursuit, but from the general direction the man was heading straight through the park.

Mustang didn't want the meeting area to be the same as last time, but it looks like he'd have no choice. Now the park looked like a true recreational area, unlike previous visits, with people young and old walking along the many paths, even playing on the boggy grass. Why did it have to be today of all days? Why couldn't the sun have waited until after they left Drachma. He placed his hand above his eyes to at least see where he was going, scouring the area in the hope of seeing someone familiar.

In the distance he heard a woman screaming. Who was he to ignore a damsel in distress? Pushing through people he ran along the path until he saw the scene unfold. Two men fighting on the ground, the one on the floor trying his utmost best to keep hold of the supposed mugger. He reached them just in time as the criminal was about to flee. Grabbing the other man tightly he did his best to restrain him, he was strong that was for sure, but not strong enough. Roy was eventually able to pin his arms behind his back with one hand as he unmasked the perpetrator. Well that was actually unexpected as he met eye to eye with Guy. His grip loosed enough for Guilford's man to wriggle free from his grasp and flee the scene. Roy watched him disappear from sight before he turned to the commotion behind him. A small crowd of people were surrounding a person laying face down.

"Is he alright?"  
"He hit the ground very hard."  
"Is he dead?"  
"Should I get a doctor?"  
"Should we take him to the infirmary?"  
"Is he bleeding?"

Roy carefully made his way through the people and knelt closely beside the motionless male. The coat hood was covering his head so there was no telling how serious the man's injury was, even more when his hands were intertwined on the back of his head. It looked like the man was being arrested rather than injured. He placed a hand on the man's shoulder, shaking and trying to talk to him, getting minuscule response. The hand left his shoulder and unlinked the two conjoined, he needed to see how bad he was injured since everyone else just seemed to stand and stare. Just like him this person was only being a good Samaritan and helping others, they could suggest things all they wanted to do to help, but they weren't even putting their plans into action. Slowly and cautiously Mustang pulled back the hood, the brunette locks said it all to him, Edward.

Ed put up a fight, or some sort of refusal, as his hair tie was removed and the digits of this other person scoured the area, no doubt for any signs of bleeding. His hands tried their best to bat away this unwanted attention, since all his voice could do was mutter and moan in complaint, but clearly this other person was having none of it. All he wanted was some peace and quiet for this pain to subside, to be left alone, and the only way for that to happen was if he got up and moved to another area. Rising from his prone state he brushed off any form of dirt and stones that had stuck to his face. The voices were telling him to stay down, like hell. The hands relentlessly still remained on his scalp even when he rose onto his knees, finding the strength needed to push them away as they pressed against the impact point. Stumbling to his feet Ed aggressively shook off the arms trying to keep him upright, this was getting beyond irritating. He took two steps before he began to fall, those other arms quickly returning to catch him and aid him, walking him to and laying him on the nearest bench.

Every time he tried to open his eyes the world was still spinning. Too bright, too nauseating. Resting his head in his hands he did his utmost best of pushing this headache away. He was no use to Roy and the others if he remained in this state, at this moment in time he was a liability. The blinding light disappeared from his eyelids, suddenly he was shrouded in darkness. In normal circumstances it would worry the person, but it was a moment for Ed to open his eyes. Light was still around, but in very small and bearable areas, enough to see that his head and torso had been covered by some sort of clothing.

"It's alright, just take your time."

That voice again that seemed to be following him was slowly growing distinctive against the others. There seemed to be a quiet conversation outside of his dark zone as the voice and one, maybe two other voices conferred with each other. He really didn't have time for this, he needed to get the relevant information from Guy.  
With his headache easing off he felt ready to resume what he was doing and ditch these people. It wasn't that he was ungrateful to those that have helped him, but with the seriousness and secrecy the final two days in Drachma will bring he didn't want knowledge or his true identity revealed. By the sounds of it the outside conversation was still going on it was enough of a distraction. Placing his feet firmly on the floor he slowly lowered his arms to the seat and quickly levered himself up...or tried. The person who was in front of him seemed prepared as two hands were placed firmly on each thigh, forcing the man to sit back down straight away. So one person was still paying attention. The blinding light attacked him once more before shrouding, but this time he was not alone in the darkness.

"Relax, it's me." Said the voice.

Didn't mean that he couldn't see the person. Saying 'relax it's me' doesn't really whittle down who it could be when his head isn't completely corresponding.

"Can you walk?"

"Well I would have found out if you had not have stopped me." Ed mumbled rather sarcastically.

The coat was lifted off him slowly. Sunlight seemed to be his arch nemesis once more as his eyes struggled to adjust. The hair that was draped over his face was gently brushed away behind his ears, but not tied back. He pushed himself to his feet unaided, but stumbled as he tried to walk. The unknown person caught him just like before, but held him tighter, putting Ed's arm around his shoulder as he held onto his waist.

Roy lead him through the streets back to the abandoned area where they were staying, but instead of heading back into the usual building he decided that, whilst Ed was still dazed, it would be best to just rest up in a quieter building. A much smaller two story building, in a much better condition then their own. It took Roy only a minute to search the place and return to Ed, sitting, wrapping his arm around the younger man and pulling him in close, allowing the ex alchemist's head to rest in the crook of his neck. Ed's eyes varied from open to closed, but at least this room was more shaded then the others from the sun. Roy reached into his coat pocket and pulled out the large envelope that Guy discreetly placed in his coat during their little scuffle. Pulling out the first sheet of paper he quickly scanned the contents. The information they desperately needed to know, it was a relief and they could now properly plan. The bad part now was that Ed may not be able to assist with the rest of the assignment. Why did Guy do that? He couldn't decide if the man was trying to help or not. He had saved Roy from the attack of one of the thugs that accompanied him and 'Matlock' to unmask Henry, but at this moment in time he had put one of his best men out of action and, according to Guilford's note, they'd need to get into place tomorrow evening or before dawn the day after.  
He unfolded another sheet of paper to reveal a map of central Drachma. On this map there was a thick line starting from one side of the city to the other, and off the map. Notes scrawled at certain points, entrances to the tunnel and where they are departing from. A detailed explanation saying that this tunnel was made by the Drachman army when tempers between them and Amestris reached boiling point, but was never completed. The previous resistance unblocked and continued to tunnel the way to the surface, but there was no mention where it exactly came up. It was strange to Roy since if it was completed they could have done their attack straight away instead of relying on the departing Amestrians that were already in the country. But then again getting all those explosives, guns and ammo would have definitely taken it's time even if they did have people in the military.

 _All references and placements were correct at the time of marking, but things will no doubt alter. I'm sorry that I cannot provide any more_ , written at the bottom of the notes.

Mustang sighed. Things always changed at the last minute when it came to offensive attacks and infiltration. There wasn't a single moment in his career that something hadn't altered before or during deployment.  
He pulled Ed closer and just sat there holding the younger man, kissing the top of his head on occasion. It was relaxing, just the two of them, a bit of extra warmth and comfort. Fair enough the circumstances of how this came around wasn't what he had hoped for, but them being together like this, properly, it calmed him, made him as happy as he had ever been. He loves this man. The years of denying, the endless women he bedded in a chance of removing these 'forbidden' feelings. The only person he told was Maes and that man took his secret to the grave. Mustang smiled, the teasing his best friend would have given him if he could see him now. He still missed Hughes, but now Ed was filling in that missing part..

"The place of departure has been moved further along then that is marked here."

Fullmetal just speaking made Mustang jump slightly, it was just so sudden that the words didn't exactly register.

"When Me and Havoc found their vehicles they weren't positioned here." Pointing to the marking on the map. "They had moved much further down to here." slowly gliding his fingertip to the new area.

Roy just had to take in a moment to let the natural blonde's words sink in as his finger remained on the new location.

Ed continued to tell his superior everything he found in the tunnel, making sure not to skip the details with what he saw on the back wall behind the Jeeps and where the entrance to said departure was.

"Are you absolutely sure?" Mustang still trying to digest all the newest information.

"Yes."

"How many fingers am I holding up?" Needing to make sure the younger man wasn't concussed.

"Three."

"Now?"

"One."

"Now?"

"None because that's your thumb, idiot."

"What day of the week is it?"

"How the hell am I supposed to know that? I've not seen a calendar or read a newspaper since we've been here." Safe to say that Ed was back to his usual self. "Look, when we get back to the others you will see the guns. I'm sure Havoc and Hawkeye have just had multiple orgasms about them by the time we return."

"It's not the weapons I'm worried about..."

Ed pulled away from him to finally get a good look into his eyes "I know, I know, but now we can plan ahead. We capture this lot and then immediatly plan out what we are going to do when we get back home, and get the real person behind all this. Yes, it's going to take some serious planning to trap this person, but we can do it." There was a moment of silence between the two before Ed smiled. "Would you still like to wallow through the wonderful sewers of central Drachma?"

Roy pulled him close once more. "I thought I could take you on a date there. No one around, just you, me and the smell of faeces and urine."

"So romantic.." He looks across to his love before his lips were immediatly covered by Mustangs. Small kisses, loving kisses. Gradually turning into longer, lingering kisses before eventually each opened their mouths and let the other's tongue entwine with their own.

"Two days." Roy pressed a quick kiss to Ed's swollen lips "Just two days." He brushed the stray hair off Ed's face.

Everyone had gathered in a circle, in the center was every single bit of information the unit had gathered within their investigations.

"Right, we need to capture as many as we can, of course that's not going to be easy with just the seven of us. Of course these men won't be restrained without a fight and casualties will suffice, hopefully none of them will be us. There are four people we do need to capture alive, Nicholas Berry, Ferren Drewry, Guilford and Guy. There is a Drachman that is of high rank also, but he isn't of as much importance, as we need the Amestrians. If you need a reminder of what the other who men look like you can consult Guilford's notes over here." He points to the necessary pages. "According to Ed and Havoc's scouting the departure has moved forward to his point." Placing a finger on the map.

Falman looked closer at the pointing finger on the map and then back up to Ed. The look on the younger man's face said it all.

Fuery raised his arm unnecessarily. "Pardon for my interruption sir, but aren't Guilford and Guy assisting us? Why must they be captured as well?"

"To keep up appearances, if they suddenly start helping us before the real perpetrator is uncovered, then things would get complicated and much harder for us then what it already is." A nod from Kain and he continued. "The tunnel from the original departure area to this one has been sealed off, so the only way out is back up the ladder or fifteen hundred metres down the tunnel to this hatch here. To get to this destination we'd have to use that hatch anyway. Along the route are side corridors, this is where we will be staying before the event. The plan is I raise a wall further down from our entrance and seal the hatch. In this first corridor are going to be the majority of us, whilst they stop at the wall we take out as many as we can from the back. Havoc and Hawkeye will be in the other passage, as soon as the convoy passes you, get into position. I'll light up the area for you to assist. Everyone will have a gun, but I only want these two to have the rifles, even if it means leaving most of them here."

"You make this sound so easy."

"Well hopefully it will be easy and we'll be back home in Amestris by evening." Roy couldn't help but quickly glance at Ed. "Now of course there were other ideas as well, but this was the most logical. Things like slashing the tires were good and well..if no one was around, but then they would know someone was onto them, not to mention there would be our transport home gone. So they'd abort, which would be fair but then we'd still have to remain here and they'll be on even higher alert that someone was watching them. Catch them in the act of leaving and there would be the element of surprise. Another one was to storm the building, but it in such a desolate area someone would easily see us coming and coming up from the tunnel was too risky."

"You got me at back home by evening." Havoc smiled with an unlit cigarette in his mouth.

"Alright everyone rest up now, we head out in a few hours."

The circle dispersed but before Ed could even reach his bed there was a tap on his shoulder. He turned round to see a concerned Falman.

"There was no indication that there was a trap door. It was so well disguised anyone would have missed it unless you knew where it was."

"We were there.."

"Like I said, anyone would have missed it. No time to worry about it now, let's just focus on the matter at hand." He may not have shown it, but inside he was pissed to hell that he never found the trap door in his initial search. Then again, if he did, who was to say that it wasn't some innocent escape in case someone came knocking?

The older man nodded and headed to his bed.

Before he could get himself settled Roy signalled for him to follow. Out into the hallway the general lead him into the stairwell and into the abandoned room on the other side. Ed silently closed the door behind him and looked to his superior.

"We've got a lot to do when we get back home." He sighed as he looked out the broken window before turning to his subordinate. "I'll be glad when this is over."

"You and me both. I've been battered and bruised to last a lifetime."

"If you're not one hundred percent Ed, I can always hold you back from the assault." Walking up to the younger man and gently placed his hands on the younger's shoulders.

Elric closed his eyes and shook his head. "You think a little knock to the head is going to stop me? I've been in much worse conditions then this going into more dangerous situations. You seem to forget you weren't the only one fighting the homunculus. If I recall you're state was worse then mine on the promised day."

"I'm just concerned about you is all."

"Splitting work and romance is increasingly difficult for you isn't it?"

"This is entirely a professional concern."

Ed mentally shook his head, yeah totally professional. "I'll be fine."

Returning to the team the two men rested before packing all their belongings and equipment. Havoc and Hawkeye made sure all weapons were fully loaded, dividing the hand gun ammo out between all of them. As much as Ed didn't want a gun he took it anyway, feeling the weight of the object in his hand, just like he did back in the tunnel, times like these he really missed using Alchemy.  
He watched as Roy followed the lines of scarred tissue on his right hand with a small, but very sharp implement, drawing out a perfect transmutation circle. Pen would have been the easier, less painful, way but would wipe away too easily, and in the midst of battle that could cost him. He waited for the wound to stop bleeding before picking up his lighter, flicking it open. He watched the flame burn for a few seconds before looking to the discarded intelligence pages they wouldn't need any more. After a snap of the fingers and flawless aim they were incinerated.  
Hawkeye and Havoc had the luxury of two rifles each along with two handguns, the bigger weapons placed back inside the only two cloth bags. They all sat in silence, going through the plan over and over in their head, no room for misjudgement and error, they only had one chance.

"Let's go." Roy stood up, his comrades following suit before leading them single file out the door and to their final destination, their final night in Drachma.

 


	24. A Bloody Encounter

There isn't a lot you can do in a pitch black tunnel, talking was definitely out of the question. The light Havoc and Hawkeye used to move deeper to their corridor had disappeared. The best all of them could do was rest and wait. Ed and Roy were once again in the tunnel where this started, this time with three others. To say it was cramped was an understatement, the two lovers sat against the far end facing towards the tunnel itself whilst the others laid down to get a bit more rest. Each member took turns keeping watch in case the departure had been pushed forward. Even though the sound of multiple engines echoing through the place might be a big give-away, but there was also a chance that a lone person or persons might lead the way meaning the torch they use will light them up like a Christmas tree.  
It was the only time Ed and Roy didn't stay awake at the same time, even the shifts were scattered. When one was sleeping the other would allow their head to fall on his shoulder, not the best make shift pillow, but it was better then concrete. Everyone would need as much rest as they possibly get, which would be much harder for Havoc and Hawkeye. With the two of them on their own it would be more difficult, even though Ed did suggest to make it near even numbers in both corridors the two soldiers politely refused on the grounds that it would be a bit hard for the members of the close quarters team to be so far away from the others. Even Roy volunteered himself to go with them, refusing once again since he's the one that has to make the decisions and give the orders, he couldn't do it so far away from the main group.

It was Fuery's watch. Whoever was to the left of him, he couldn't remember, poked him so hard in the ribs to wake him up they were still hurting. He should be used to this waiting around, on sentry duty, in quietness. It was a lonely time, back in the stairwell he at least had light, here he couldn't see his hand in front of his face. He held it up anyway using his other hand to touch whichever digit comes into his mind.

Ring, pinky, index, ring, thumb, middle, pinky, pinky, thumb, ring..

His movement suddenly stopped as something caught his eye. He blinked a few times just to make sure that it wasn't the darkness playing tricks on him, all that corner of the eye stuff. He slowly crawled to the end of the corridor and looked around the corner. There wasn't much, but there was a slight change, a very faint glow far into the distance. As much as he would have liked to know if it was near the departing time he still couldn't see the clock face on his wrist, so the next best thing was to wake everyone up. He withdrew back into the corridor, hastily shaking whatever leg, arm, shoulder he could find.

"What's wrong?" Came a quiet mutter from someone, before there were noises of shifting.

"There's a light much further down the tunnel."

Shuffling through the now clear gap as everyone moved to the sides Roy cautiously peered his head around the corner. Yes they were a good fifteen hundred metres away from the vehicles but in such a dark passage there was a distinctive change ahead. Climbing to his feet he walked out into the main part of the tunnel, hugging against the wall as he quickly made his way towards Havoc and Riza. He didn't get very far as the sound of engines igniting filled the air and echoed loudly down the tunnel. He had to make a hasty retreat, hoping that his two firearms specialists were awake and ready, mind you the noise was so loud he wouldn't be surprised that the people on the surface may wake the closer they make their way over to them. Of course where the Jeeps are now the area was too isolated to have any effect on the surface.

The General flipped open his lighter to make sure everyone was ready. Guns hidden, but easily accessible. Everyone wide awake. Flipping the casing closed he took the lead, standing straight against the wall with their backs to the oncoming vehicles. It seemed like an eternity before the sounds began to get louder and the tunnel to get brighter. As much as the General was nervous since this would be their only chance he was eager to get the job done as the adrenaline pumped through his entire being. He looked towards his own blockade hoping that it hadn't just miraculously disappeared in the time they'd been down here. In the alcove to the side were all their cases blocking the way out, which happened to be sealed at the same time. No escape apart from that long distance back to the only exit, to the house which neither Ed, Roy or Falman wanted to return to. Anything important was in the satchels piled up in the corner of their corridor.

As the sound drew closer and closer Mustang positioned his fingers ready to snap at a moments notice. If the enemy saw him he wasn't going to hesitate into protecting his unit. He had to make the first move because if he didn't..well that wasn't worth thinking about, because that wasn't going to happen. As the tunnel began to light up more and more, the sound of the Jeeps grew closer, but what really alerted to Roy and no doubt the rest of the others in this passage, was that the vehicles seemed to have slowed down. As much as he wanted to see what was going on he knew that if he stuck his head out he'd be blinded by the headlights and if someone happened to be looking further down he would be seen, putting everyone in danger.

Ed saw that look, the rare Mustang uncertainty. Do they change the plan or remain as they were? It was obvious they've seen the erected wall a bit further down and where probably throwing insults at each other, hidden in the noise of engine revs and exhaust. The fact that they were getting slower means that they could see everyone in this side passage. Yes there was the danger of that in the first place, but there was a strong hope of them going just that little bit faster.

Roy looked back to the squad for some sort of help with his decision. He could erect another wall protecting them, but that will block them from seeing when they passed them plus he wouldn't be able to give the signal to the others further back. Not to mention they were relying on stealth for most of the plan to work, putting up and dismantling a wall wasn't exactly quiet.

Ed was about to break the line and head over to Mustang when Fuery quickly grabbed him and flung the younger man back to his place at the back of the line, stopping all movement just in time as a figure appeared in their opening. Everyone froze, backs, or in Ed's case front, stiff and straight against the wall. Roy was literally three feet away from him, his arm still outstretched was much closer. If this man was on his own he would have been taken out in a flash, instead his thumb was poised on the top of the lighter, ready to flick it open to produce the required spark.

The man looked back down to the others. Luckily for him, or the Amestrians, his back was turned to them as he ushered the Jeeps forward. The noise was loud, but some of the five men in that corridor held their breath, others slowly rested their hand on their gun. For Ed his eyes were fixed on Mustang, ready for the signal to resume their original plan. All six Jeeps passed by, taking their place, still two by two, in front of the wall. The tunnel that echoed loudly had now gone silent, all engines had been switched off with only the front car headlights shining on the obstruction, all that remained where the footsteps of the men who jumped off their wagons.

"Care to explain what this is?"

"It's a wall, what else does it look like?"

"Why is it here?"

"Because it didn't want to be left behind. I don't bloody know!"

Falman took the chance and broke the line, creeping behind the man still unaware of their presence. He looked to the General before wrapping his arm around the man's throat and his other hand clasped tightly against his mouth and nose. The Drachman's hands immediatly clasped into Falman's arms in a desperate attempt to remove the tight grip obstructing this airways. Screams were muffled as the man begun to fight and claw himself free, but each attempt grew weaker and weaker as his oxygen supply diminished. Vato dragged the man into the side corridor as he was out cold. Roy looked to Ed, the younger man nodded indicating Breda and Fuery to follow him. Quickly the three men crept out of hiding and quickly behind the men standing at the back of the entourage. Ed quickly glanced at both men either side of him, to make sure they were in position, before giving the signal. All three lunged, just as Falman did, tightly squeezing their necks until they fell unconscious on the cold, hard floor.

Ed and the others quickly took their places behind the back two Jeeps. The youngest peered down the clear walkway to see Matlock and Drewry were the ones arguing with each other. Well at least they knew where two of their capture targets were and he would happily bet that the other two were up there with them. The easiest part of this was done, now the problem was how to take out the others. He did predict two to three people per Jeep so they have taken one group out at least in less than a minute.

"I swear we aren't going to get anywhere with those at each other's throats."

Ed put his senses on high alert as a strong smell of cigarette smoke wafted over him. Crouching to the floor he saw two pairs of feet at the front of the vehicle. Their next targets unknowingly volunteered. The middle Aisle was empty. Fuery checked the far side indicating that there were at least five people to his side. Breda's side to the left of Edward was clear as well. At least two at the wall, five to the side, two targets in front, four out cold. Twelve, two per Jeep. At the moment now he was stuck. As hopefully easy as it would be to take out the people closest to them they were too much in view of anyone, unlike the others that were now lying unconscious behind them. With any idea swiftly rejected he turned his attentions quickly to Roy, signalling how many and where each person was.

The General and Falman quickly made their way to the others. Flame taking his place next beside Fuery to look down at the group by the wall whilst Falman took his place at the other Jeep. He needed to create a distraction for Ed and Breda, luckily they brought their cases along with them. Of course it was a strange request to tell the rest of his unit to bring them along, since he specifically said that they weren't going to be needing to take them back to Amestris. They needed to travel light, Roy needed something to burn. With the transmutation circle still clearly etched onto his hand all he needed to do was flip the lighter lid and create a spark. Only problem now was that it needed to look as unintended as possible. If he just set the cases on fire just as they are then they'd be suspicious and on high alert, most likely to see it then quickly turn around with guns drawn just as Ed and Heymans attack. All they could do was wait.

"You think this is some kind of joke? Get rid of it!" Drewry and Matlock's argument continued.

"You got a sledgehammer? Cause I sure don't. You make it look like I put it here, you were the one who checked this far only yesterday!"

"You think I would have the time to build a wall!? Remember who you are speaking to Frazen, I do out rank you."

"Ah pulling out the rank card again, what next? The twin card? You're really the brother who is fictional?"

"Will you two stop bickering or I'll send you both packing, look, your suitcases are ready."

Roy looked over to Ed, giving him the nod to prepare himself as he looked back towards their discarded cases. The items in question began to gather an audience, the four capture targets all in his field of vision.

"What are these doing here?"

"Someone must have thought this was the sewer and hoped to get rid of them."

"What if there's a dead body in there?"

"Are you serious?"

"Totally! You haven't heard the stories?"

"Or it could be money, jewellery.."

One of the men grabbed a case and opened it. "Or clothes.."

With that instant Roy sent a spark straight into the case causing the contents to suddenly burst into flames. Ed and Breda wasted no time in jumping the two men near them just as they had done with the others. Fullmetal was a strong man, he didn't sit idly during his break from the military, but even he found himself struggling against his target. For a man who looked scrawny the Drachman didn't half put up a fight. He needed to be taken down fast before the others looked away from the flaming cases. With the help of Breda, after the older man took out his, they finally felled him to the floor, but not before the anti Amestrian threw his arm down onto the bonnet of his vehicle. The noise loudly echoed through the tunnel giving Breda no choice but to grab the man's head and hastily jerk it to the side, snapping the neck and killing him. As much as they didn't want Drachman deaths it was the only choice remaining for a swift take-down.

"Chris? Hillun?"

Roy looked down the side, the flaming luggage now long forgotten as all men looked out to the Jeeps.

"Nate? Lyen? Chek?"

One of the men reached into the nearest vehicle and pulled out a cloth bag. Mustang didn't need to see what the contents were to know what was going to happen next.

"Spread out, we seem to have company." Berry ordered his group in the most relaxed and calmest tone.

Ushering the others over to his Jeep Roy slowly guided the others to the side of the vehicle down the side where they once stood as the group made their way into the car park of vehicles. The luggage was still burning brightly giving Havoc and Hawkeye the perfect vision should they come into serious danger. Breaths had to be calm and steady, not a single noise could emit from them or in this environment their whereabouts would be known. Mustang looked around the bonnet, one man standing alone, so very close. Roy went to a standing crouch ready to snap his neck..

"I'd think twice if I were you or I'll swear I'll put a bullet through this ones head!"

All five Amestrians quickly turned to the figure walking towards them with a person tightly in his grasp. Hawkeye. His arm gripped tightly around her neck with a gun pressed against her temple. The man holding her in question was the burly bald Drachman, the one he pushed to the side not being a capture target, Gavin Hawke. There was no sight of him in the entourage so why was he on foot and coming from the extraction point? The fact that he wasn't with the group in the first place meant he was either dead, unable to make the trip or was just staying behind. Even if he was going to Amestris with the others why was he walking so far behind them? Did they know that his unit was waiting? No, they could not of known. If they did they'd have been ready from the start. Ed, Fuery and Breda wouldn't have gotten within five feet of their first targets. The fact that this man was standing with just Riza brought up more questions. Where was Jean? Why wasn't he protecting her?

"Stand up, backs against the wall."

The Amestrians hesitated.

"I said do it!" Pressing the gun harder into the weapon expert's head.

He or the others could shoot, but the man was using Riza as a human shield so the risk wasn't worth it. They were at their mercy now, Mustang having no choice but to nod to his unit to do as the man says. All lined up with every person's gun pointing in their direction as they made their way over to them.

"Is this all of them?" Berry turned to the Drachman as each man was searched.

The bald man nodded "There was another one back further down the tunnel, but he's been dealt with. Both him and her were poised, holding our rifles."

Berry looked back to the unit as the hidden guns were confiscated. "You care to tell us how you got these?"

All six of them remained silent.

"Well at least we know that we didn't misplace a bag." Holding one of the guns in his hand. "How did you even know of this place?"

Silence.

"How you came to know of what we were doing?"

Silence.

"They got information..."

All eyes were now on a man the suddenly got too close to Ed, staring into the ex alchemists eyes. No one likes their personal space being breached and it was so tempting for the natural blonde to right hook the man's face.

"Well that's obvious. I want to know how they got this information."

"This one.." Indicating Ed in front of him "..and that one." Looking over to Roy. "I've seen these two around...with one of us."

"Who?"

The man took a step back from Ed. He turns round to his team lined up with their guns still drawn at Roy's. He took a good look at all the men before he stopped and pointed at one man in particular.

Guy.

"Care to elaborate?" The bald Drachman replied.

"He was sitting with them at the park a few days ago, not long before leading them into the woods. I couldn't follow, but he came back out five minutes later and they..." Looking back briefly to Roy and Ed. "..re appeared a good 10 minutes after. Then a couple of days ago they met again, not as obvious this time, disguised as a robbery. Even though no words were said it was clear something happened."

"Are you seriously believing this shit? This guy is an alcoholic! If he hasn't got a bottle attached to his hand he hallucinates, withdrawals!"

The man lunged at Guy after his outburst, grabbing the informer's jacket he pushed him hard against the bonnet. "Don't worry, I have one last...observation to tell. Nicholas, remember that time you told me to go and get Frazen as there was an urgent matter you needed to discuss with him, and I came back saying he wasn't at home?"

Berry nods "Yes".

"Well he may not have been home, but this one was there and he wasn't alone. Saw those two outside the front door, checking the place out. Then knocking on the door lo and behold Guy opens it and lets them in."

Hawke now pointed his gun away from Riza and straight at Guy. "Did you hear what was said between them?"

"I wasn't able to, no. There was another one of them in the alley so I couldn't stay any longer." Pointing to Falman.

What followed was deadly silence. As much as they wanted to help Guy if they so much moved towards him it would show his treachery, likewise with Guilford if he defended him he'd be in the frame too. Both men needed to get out of here alive to help them catch the real mastermind behind the Central attacks, but at the moment all were unable to help without getting a bullet.

"Let go of him Vry, we need to hear his side of the story." Berry ordered the man.

Guy was released and nervously stood to his feet. All the others took steps back, not wanting to be associated with him in any way, all but Guilford who stood his ground. "I know what it looks like..."

A gunshot rang through the tunnel.

One minute Guy was standing, the next he was leaning lifelessly onto Naython. Guilford was frozen on the spot, eyes widened with shock as the blood of his most trusted friend quickly absorbed itself into his clothing.

"Guilty as charged." Gavin sniggered before another gunshot sounded, this one more defiant, more powerful.

With the echo it was hard to determine where the weapon was fired from, it was just as loud as if someone fired it right next to their ear. Everyone looked around startled, each trying to find out who the next victim was, but no one had fallen.

Missed shot or a misfire from one of the Jeeps?

But someone had been shot, Falman felt the warmth of blood hit his face. Wiping the crimson off his face he quickly looked to his colleagues lined up beside him. Everyone was fine, until he looked to Hawkeye. The General's assistant and bodyguard was falling along with Gavin to the floor, the Drachman sported a hole in his head where the bullet made impact.

Before the rest of the anti Amestrians could retaliate another shot sounded, giving Falman time to help free Riza as a cry of agony and expletives turned the air blue. The rest of the unit took advantage, disarming the distressed Drachmans of their weapons and knocked the remaining men out cold. Fuery went for Drewry, surrendering to them immediatly without a blow thrown, his weapon long discarded and cowering behind a Jeep with his hands on his head.

As soon as the threat was over Riza didn't wait, quickly turning on her heels and running back down the tunnel in the search for her injured colleague, Falman following hot on her tails.

Mustang loomed over Berry as the Amestrian feebly tried to reach for his gun, it was just a fingertip away before a boot lifted and applied pressure to the already agonising wound causing the man to clutch the area with both hands. The general crouched down in front of the wounded man, who in turn glared and snarled back at him. No words were spoken as the man finally gave up the struggle and reluctantly surrendered to his fellow countryman.

In the distance the sound of feet stomping against the concrete floor stopped.

"Jean?" Falman lightly shook the man slumped semi-conscious and face down on the floor. "Jean?" Putting his fingers onto the man's neck to feel for a pulse. He found one, not as strong as it could be, but at least he was alive and breathing. But his body was broken. Hawkeye averted her eyes from the horribly twisted right leg to to the hand still holding tightly to the gun, which was in his less favoured hand.

"Jean, It's Riza and Vato." She said close to his ear "We are okay, you can let go of the gun now."

The grip loosened slightly, but was enough to allow Riza to carefully remove his finger from the trigger and the weapon away from his hand completely. It was known that both firearms experts could fire their weapon from either hand, but Havoc had always favoured his right as the stronger. It also meant that along with his leg his hand or arm were damaged as well.  
The time had come to turn him onto his side to see the full extent of his injuries. Finding whatever they could they put the leg in a makeshift split of wood, twine, metal and whatever else they could find in the near vicinity. Riza held the man's head in her hands, keeping his neck still as Falman slowly and carefully rolled their colleague onto his side. Further back towards the others more light reached to them in the form of all the six Jeeps' headlights had been turned on, not illuminating the area, but with more than enough light to see the injuries on the patient.

It was horrid seeing anyone in this state, yet alone your team mate and friend...

After binding Berry, Drewry's hands and feet they loaded the two men onto separate Jeeps, making sure they had removed any weapons and other sharp implements that were near them on the off chance that they would try and cut themselves loose. Guilford was treated more gently, the man was still traumatised by the death of his close friend. When the fight had ended the two Amestrians found Naython in exactly the same position as they left him, with Guy's motionless corpse still heavily resting on him. His eyes never left the body as Roy and Ed loosely tied him up. As much as Edward said why they were tying him up and what they were doing it clearly fell on deaf ears, the man was completely zoned out. His coat covered in his friend's blood.  
Roy knew of the pain and loss of losing your most trusted and loyal friend. Losing Maes Hughes was a devastating blow to him, even visiting the phone box where he lost his life was hard enough, but seeing the person killed right in front of you and his body lying on the floor he couldn't even imagine what this man was going through. As much as you need a friend during these times you also wanted to be alone. Placing the traumatised man on the back of a Jeep he heard the sound of footsteps running back towards him.

"What's happening?" He called out to his female colleague, but she didn't reply. Her hands were bloody and she rooted through every Jeep to find something, pulling out boxes from each one - First aid boxes. "Hawkeye, what is happening?" Her breathing was short and hurried. "Riza!" He called out to her as she ran back further into the tunnel. This wasn't good, there was panic in her eyes and for someone like Riza Hawkeye that was rare...very rare. He only heard about it from Alphonse just how troubled she was when Lust said that he was dead, her emotions took over. He looked over to Ed who had the same expression of concern on his face.

"Go help them, we'll be alright."

He turned to Fuery, who was hesitantly treating Berry's wound, and Breda. Both men nod there heads in conformation as to what Ed had told him. Part of him didn't want to go. The fear of losing another trusted and loyal friend placed itself into his mind. But his legs moved, and moved quickly.

The full extent of Jean's injuries had become clear. Now a broken leg was the least of their problems as Falman applied pressure to this right shoulder. The reason why the gun was in the other hand. The knife lay underneath his body, the blade was small, serrated, bloodied and looked rather menacing. His clothing had absorbed a good amount of the crimson, that now began to drip to the floor. Falman quickly removed the articles of fabric as Riza rushed off to get medical supplies. Every military vehicle either had a medic or a first aid box, even both in extreme cases. Until she returned with something he applied pressure to the wound in a hope to subdue the bleeding. Havoc was slowly regaining conciousness, but it wouldn't be long before he passed out again from blood loss. The shoulder wasn't the only problem, his face was caked in dried and still fresh blood from a nasty looking wound on his face, but with so much blood he was unable to tell where the wound even was.  
Riza had quickly returned handing him multiple dressings as a fresh compression. Roy suddenly joined them and immediatly tending to the head wound, grabbing a bottle of water from his satchel and pouring it gently over a dressing and cleaning the area. The wound was dangerously close to his eye. He couldn't get a proper look with Havoc's eyes being closed, he couldn't even lift the lid up to inspect his eye with the thin skin was also cut. All he could do was bandage the area up and keep out the way of the other two, handing them the items that were needed to stem and stop the bleeding.

Ed, Fuery and Breda sat in silence, guarding the captured. Fuery had knocked Berry out cold, having enough of the constant cursing and hate thrown his and the rest of the unit's way. Apart from Falman he had the biggest patience, but that grew thin rather quickly when he began to brag about Havoc.  
One of the shadows further down the tunnel turned round and began to run back. They all looked at Roy as the older man clapped his hands and placed them onto the bodywork of the Jeep, cutting it away from the rest he was left with a flat panel.

"Ed, get everything ready. We leave immediatly."

Without needing to be told twice the natural blonde lept into action, removing the unwanted bags from the three Jeeps. Breda aided Guilford properly onto the Jeep as Fuery started all three engines and permanently disabling the other three. In no time at all the remaining four Amestrians appeared, Havoc heavily bandaged up and bound to the makeshift stretcher. Breda traded places with Roy as the General quickly removed the wall blocking their departure as their injured comrade was gently loaded on. Riza remained with Havoc as Ed jumped into the driver's seat. Breda, and Falman took another with both Berry and Drewry in the back leaving Roy and Fuery with Guilford.

Roy and Fuery were the first to depart with Ed and Riza at the back of the convoy, both of them needed to be ready if Berry and / or Drewry decide to do a stupid and 'fall out' of the Jeep. But with Breda pointing his gun to Berry and Drewry being a coward there was high belief they would just stay where they were. The main priority was to get them back to Amestris in one piece whilst Hawkeye keeps Havoc stable.

Hours had passed since they set off down the tunnel before the vehicles slowly ground to a halt. Ahead of them a ramp leading to daylight. As much as they wanted to keep going they didn't know where the tunnel came out. By the amount of time they travelled they could be anywhere.

Elric leapt out of the driver's seat as he and Mustang quickly ran up the gradient to inspect the surface and their surroundings.

The exit was well hidden by grassy hills in all but one direction, which lead to a dirt road. Before Mustang could even suggest it Ed had begun climbing one of the hills, quickly scrambling after him the unmistakable sound of a train horn sounded in the distance. They could at least follow the train tracks to the next named station if nothing else. It was looking promising.

Ed reached the pinnacle and looked to the city around a mile in front of him. Where the hell were they? Nothing looked familiar. He'd done his fair bit of travelling with his brother on their search for the Philosopher's stone, but this place wasn't showing him anything familiar. Roy and finally caught up and was... laughing. Laughing like a mad man... Great he's lost his mind.

"That my dear Edward.." Putting his arm around the younger man's shoulders "..is Rejo. Central Headquarters is less then half an hour away."

Great, that was fine and all, but to the ex alchemist that meant nothing. "Never heard of it."

"Whenever you go to the North you go through this station, you would have stopped and passed through it many times. Actually you may have been too short to even look out the window on your travels, which could explain a lot." He smiled is Ed gave him a slight glare. Sure the short comments won't work on him any more, but it was fun to still get some sort of reaction out of him. But now wasn't the time to be messing around as he tapped the Major General's shoulder descending back underground.

Roy began reverting everyone back to their original hair colours. Going into Central City would be near impossible looking the way they were now if security was still tight. Ed and Riza getting top priority as the driver and carer for the unconscious Havoc.  
It was a sight to behold seeing Ed's hair back to the blonde he knew and missed, it was even more breath taking when he removed those blue things from his eyes. He would have remembered what they were called if he wasn't mesmerized by those golden orbs. It took all the willpower Mustang had to not lunge at his subordinate and crash their lips together. He didn't have time to have these thoughts right now, but damn why were there other people here. To keep his mind busy he started on Fuery's hair as Ed lept back in the Jeep with Riza. The ex alchemist gave the car horn a little tap as he slowly ascended up the ramp before putting the accelerator hard on the floor and speeding out of sight to their destination.

There was one last thing they had to do before heading back to central command. Stepping off the Jeep when they reached the fresh air once more Mustang turned back to the tunnel entrance. It had to be sealed. As much as he wanted to completely seal the whole thing up it would take a tremendous amount of Alchemy that he didn't dare use. The original plan was to stop after a certain distance and seal the areas bit by bit, but that went out the window with the seriousness of Havoc's injuries. Clapping his hands together Roy fell to his knees, placing his palms on the concrete slope. The flooring raised as he transmuted a wall underneath the material, blocking the entrance or exit in Amestris. It would do for now and would take an awfully long time to break through it unless you were an alchemist. He made a mental note to get Armstrong on the case, sure there may be a statue of him in this exact spot, but the man was more able then the Flame at constructing.

He stood back to his feet and clambered back into the Jeep.

Next stop, Central command.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the delay in getting this chapter out. The hot weather doesn't bode well with me.   
> 2 or 3 chapters left...wow we are almost there guys!


	25. A long wait, now over.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is basically just RoyEd. If it's not your thing see you next chapter!  
> I'm still a newbie when it comes to writing this, but hey, practise makes perfect.

Ed was rather surprised as he turned onto Mustang's driveway to see the lights on in the house. He stayed a bit longer than necessary at the hospital fully well knowing it would take Roy and the others a while to report their findings to Grumman. He even went back to his apartment to take a quick shower and change into his comfortable and more familiar clothing just to use up some more time. But even then he was expecting to be waiting outside for a while longer. He slowly drew the car to a halt the gravel underneath ground against one another as he turned the wheel, parking the vehicle close to the front door. He let the engine rumble a few seconds before turning the key, headlights suddenly switching off, the only available light coming from the window close by. At least it was easier updating everyone of Havoc's condition if they were in all inside the building. As he clambered out the driver's seat the front door opened, shining a stronger light then the dim that radiated from the window. Leaning in the doorway was the one and only Roy Mustang, the real Roy Mustang. The raven haired, dark orbed and freshly shaven Roy Mustang that was constantly in his thoughts.  
  
"You're here rather early." He called to his superior as he reached into the back to grab his jacket.  
  
"Grumman told us all to get some rest, he'll hear the report in the morning." He turned to the side, allowing the younger man into his home. His eyes transfixed on the younger man as he hung his jacket on the rack. There was just something about Ed wearing that sleeveless tank showing off his toned arms, not to mention when he bent down slightly to take his boots off.  
  
Both men walked into the front room, Ed taking a seat as Roy made him a drink as he retrieved his.  
  
"Where is everyone?"  
  
"Gone home." Handing Ed a glass of scotch. " I did offer for them to stay another night, but they wanted to get to their own homes. Can't blame them wanting comfort in familiar surroundings, we've been away for a while." He took a seat next to Ed on the couch. "What's the news on Jean?" Taking a sip from his glass.  
  
"His leg is broken in three places and was awfully lucky his shoulder didn't sustain any serious damage. He was heading into surgery when I left, Hawkeye volunteered to stay since there was no need for both if us to be there. Besides she knows more of the medical terms because I didn't understand half the things they were saying, she had to translate for me." Taking a long sip of alcohol. "Does Grumman know of our prisoners?"  
  
"Of course, I got those words out before he kicked us out of his office. He was questioning as to why we put Guilford in the holding cells as well, but he believes our judgement. We'll just have to explain everything else and start the next part of the assignment tomorrow."  
  
The amber liquid swirled around the younger man's glass before he downed the rest of it in one shot, Roy taking the glass off him to place it on the coffee table with his own. He turned to face the younger man, bringing his hand to the tanned skin, gliding his finger tips along his cheek to under his chin. He leant in and their lips met in a soft lingering kiss, the first one both men willingly consenting without surprise or argument in this house, their first as an actual couple in Amestris.  
He pulled away, his lips staying millimetres from Ed's as they both savoured the moment. Breaking military law was rather rewarding as his fingers softly glided along the ex alchemists jaw line before he cupped a cheek in his palm, bring their lips together once more. Ed's hand mirrored his as their lips slowly moved with each other eventually moving to tangle his digits in the raven locks to deepen the kiss even more. Mustang's free arm wrapped itself around Ed's waist, pulling him onto his lap, Ed adjusting his seating to straddling his superior. As easy as it would be to just rip each other's clothes off they didn't want to. They had the whole house, the whole night, to themselves. There was no rush, no time limit. Roy's hands glided down Ed's sides before coming to a rest on his waist once more as the younger man slightly pulled away from their embrace, just as Roy did earlier.  
  
"When do we have to go in tomorrow?" Ed spoke in a very low and alluring voice before kissing his superior once more before Roy replied.  
  
"When we can." Gently lifting up the base of the black tank, allowing his fingertips to grace the skin underneath. "Late morning perhaps." He looked into the gold orbs staring back at him. How easy it was to get lost in them.  
  
"Good." Was replied as the buttons on his shirt were undone one by one.  
  
Ed marvelled in the sight of a beautifully toned torso that he only dreamed of until now. Running his fingertips over every muscle and through the canals of his abdomen. He looked back to Roy, who's eyes hadn't left him. He could fall for this man time and time again. Grabbing each side of the shirt in either hand he pulled the fabric towards him, effectively making Roy move with it. Their faces just inches apart he brushed the shirt off the older man's shoulders with Roy helping him taking it off and throwing it somewhere across the room. Roy lifted Ed's tank up and over his head throwing it in the same general direction. Lips were immediatly on Ed's neck and collar bone causing the younger man to release a pleasurable breath. Soft butterfly kisses descended until the tip of Roy's tongue connected with his nipple and tenderly caressed the nub before the hardened skin was taken between into the warm mouth and sucked upon tenderly. As the same administrations happened on the other nub his fingers dug deeper into the raven locks, pulling the older man away and connecting their mouths in a more passionate embrace reminiscent of their times in the stairwell. But this time they weren't breaking the moment like they always had to. The kiss wasn't to the exact feral passion both could achieve, but it was well on the way there. Roy's hands stroked and scraped up and down Ed's back, on occasion teasing the younger man as his fingertips graced the top of his pants before returning higher.  
  
The couch suddenly became a hindrance. As much as you can do on a couch for most practical reasons right now it wasn't the best place to explore your love for the very first time. Heavy breathing was all that each could hear as their eyes connected and never leaving the other as Ed slowly rose from the generals lap, grabbing one of the other's hands as he stood. Roy followed instinctively, making sure he was never then a couple of inches away from Ed at any given time. Golden orbs broke eye contact to view the partially bare Roy Mustang once more allowing his fingertips to explore the torso once more. Every crevice, muscle and scar was not left untouched, the torso which could tell many stories, laid bare for him to see. He looked up to see Mustangs eyes had closed, savouring the touches the ex alchemist was administrating. Their foreheads touched before Ed's hands glided back up his body, cupping the older man's face for a long embracing kiss. The fantasies he'd had about this man over the years were finally becoming a reality, and the best part was that there was so much more to come.  
  
It was time to change scenery, not that there were looking at their surroundings in the first place. Roy took Ed's hand in his and slowly began leading him out into the hallway, stopping on occasion that his lips couldn't be too far from Ed given a certain time limit. He couldn't help himself, he craved the younger man with a passion he never thought he had. No one had ever made him feel this way apart from the very man in front of him. Why did it take him so long to realise how important he was to him? But these questions he could ask and hit himself about another time as they reached the top of the stairs he was pushed into the closest wall possible. Ed's lips connected, nipped, licked and sucked the tender flesh on his nape, possibly leaving a mark but the general couldn't care less as he ushered Ed back before crashing his mouth to the Major General. Pure lust took over as he ravaged the younger man's mouth, the heavy breaths escaping them as their tongues clashed with much desire to dominate, neither succeeding. They heaved deeply after pulling apart for much needed oxygen, but Roy was barely able to catch a breath as the newest sensation flooded his system. A moan escaped him as Ed's hand drifted lower then it had ever been before. The blonde caressed the area that had been in this state since their embrace started, and Roy very well knew that Ed was in the same state. The kiss ended, but the administrations did not as Fullmetal leaned forward to whisper in the Flame's ear.  
  
"Bedroom." The huskiness in his voice sent the most pleasant shiver down his body straight to the area that didn't really need any more encouragement.  
  
The blonde hooked his fingers in Roy's belt loops, encouraging the man to follow him - not that he needed any encouragement as he followed more than willingly. Ed stopped with his back against the door and Roy flush against him giving the younger man a gentle and loving kiss before the blonde looked to the handle. Grabbing the metal handle he pushed it down and opened the door, looking back to Roy before taking him by the hand and leading them inside.  
  
As soon as the door closed the blonde continued to lead the way, giving the man a quick kiss before pushing him onto the bed. He coyly watched as the raven shifted to lay comfortably, before the blonde climbed on and straddled him. He leaned forward and gently gave a quick kiss on the lips before drifting lower to his chin, along his jawline and to his neck where he lingered, littering the nape with licks and kisses before latching onto the skin. He sucked and nibbled the tender area as a soft moan escaped from the man under him. As soon as he left his mark his lips made contact with Roy's once more. Soft and delicate just like when they were in the front room. Roy's hands glided down the tanned skin, resting on the slender hips pulling him close and creating beautiful friction as their groins met. Both men let out a pleasurable gasp before Ed trailed a hand down the ivory chest and abdomen, cupping Roy as he did only minutes ago at the top of the stairs. Ed broke their embrace trailing kisses down the man's neck, tongue drifting over an already hardened nub before he kissed his way down before he reached his pants. He glanced up to see Roy watching him closely as he painstakingly unbuttoned the item of clothing. Roy raised his hips as he pulled them off and dropped it on the floor. Roy's erection was easy to see in the tightness of his underwear. Ed couldn't resist but to kiss up the clothed shaft and letting his tongue circle the tip, able to taste the older man which left him craving for more. His fingers curled into the waistband and slowly pulled the final item of clothing down and thrown to the floor. He looked at the stunning sight below him, Roy Mustang completely bare for him to see. He couldn't even comprehend why he had waited so long for this man. His sight focused to the twitching organ in dire need for attention, and who was he to deny it? For years this was something he dreamed of every time he saw his superior, just to drop to his knees and pleasure him. Now it became a reality as he ran his tongue up the shaft, tasting Roy's essence on the tip before gradually taking the organ into his mouth. Roy gasped as Fullmetal began to suck, his hands immediatly tangled in the blonde locks as the younger man's mouth and tongue began to move up and down the shaft. The moans and curses escaping from Roy's mouth only made the blonde suck harder, swirling his tongue around the head once more.  
  
"Ed..." Roy groaned as he began to fist the blonde's hair tighter, nearing to release. Ed moaned in reply, the vibrations drove Roy over the edge, releasing his load in the awaiting mouth with a loud gasp. He could feel Ed milk every last drop out of him before his organ was released to the air. Ed crawled back up to him placing quick kisses on the general's lips. Roy's hands drifted to Ed's still clothed lower half and squeezed his ass cheeks. He needed to do something about that. He sat up with Ed and whispered into his ear  
  
"Get on your knees"  
  
He did as he was told, straddling his love as Roy's attention went straight to Ed's belt buckle making swift action of undoing the item and throwing it away like the rest of their clothes. After unbuttoning the trousers he slid them down as far as they could go along with his underwear, which wasn't that far really, but more than enough to reach his goal. He took the length in his hand and directed it straight into his mouth. Ed couldn't help but buckle his hips in the slick heat, he resisted doing it again until Roy gently held his hips and urging him to carry on. Ed gasped and moaned as he slowly fucked his superiors mouth, gradually getting faster as he felt the man's tongue wrap around him. Roy moaned around him causing more delicious friction. His hands entwined themselves in the raven locks as Roy's mouth kept sucking him back in. He didn't last long releasing his essence into that mouth, that should really come with a warning label, moaning loudly in bliss. His legs gave way and sat back down on him, resting his forehead on the shoulder as he rode out the aftermath. Roy held him close as he reached over to his bedside drawer. He spun the tube in his fingers as Ed came down from euphoria.  
  
"Which...would you prefer?" Usually this was a no-brainer for Roy, but then again his conquests were all female so he didn't have to think about it.  
  
Ed looked to the tube, taking it into his hand and examining it. Roy was willing to be the receiver? He had about as many fantasies of taking Roy as fingers on one hand. Sure, this could open up new thoughts and ideas, but there was only one goal for Fullmetal right now. A desire that had been with him from the start and followed him everywhere he went. That familiar feeling began to well up in his abdomen as he immediatly began picturing it in his mind, and now those images were going to be fulfilled.  
  
He raised his head, smirking at the flame before leaning in to whisper. "As tempting as the offer is all I want right now is for you to fuck me. Fuck me like I've fantasised you doing for so long." Placing the tube back into the older man's hand.  
  
Every whispered word went straight to the general's already re hardened groin. Ed talking dirty was...unexpected, but probably the best non physical turn on ever. So much so that any restraints suddenly vanished as Roy crashed their lips together, Ed more then happy to oblige as teeth and tongues clashed in a fierce battle of lust. By the time they broke apart Roy's hands were already in motion, Ed watching as the clear liquid coated the general's fingers. He got into position, Mustang looming over him before the cool fingers made their way down his spine before stroking across his entrance, teasing the sensitive flesh before a finger slipped through the tight ring of muscle. The second was added shortly after, Ed's body welcoming the intrusion allowing the digits to thrust, stroke and stretch in preparation. All the teasing that Roy wanted to do will have to wait until another time, his body was just as desperate as Ed's for some much awaited relief. He removed his fingers, much to Ed's whine of displeasure at the sudden loss he quickly coated his member, taking in a moment to admire the flushed face below before pressing a soft and gentle kiss to his lips. The time in Drachma they couldn't do anything but kiss to a certain degree, but now back at home the lubricated member pressed against Ed's entrance before slowly pushing into the deep heat. Breathy moans were released by both men as Roy went further into Ed's body before he was fully sheathed. He could have burst right there, the tight heat of his love squeezing him as the muscles began to adjust and relax. He looked deep into the golden orbs below him, brushing the stray hair away before cupping the heated cheek, pressing his lips to the blonde's as gently as it was back in the front room. All the tension from Drachma had finally faded as Ed wrapped his legs around his general, he was ready and Roy was more then ready. Their embrace remained as Mustang began to slide out of his subordinate before slowly pushing back in. Moans escaped or were swallowed as the slow and steady pace continued. Roy was going to make sure their first time together would last.  
His hands roamed the toned, wet skin. He just couldn't get enough of the ex alchemist, the way his skin tasted salty every time he kissed or licked it, the way his muscles contracted and released, the way he moaned those beautiful tones. Perfect, Edward Elric was just perfect. No woman has made him this way, no woman had made him feel this good, no woman had captured his heart like the man in his arms had. Along with the moans of his name and curses that filled the air Roy could feel the blonde's muscles begin to tighten around him. With every bit of strength in his body he thrusted as hard and fast as he could before the younger man exploded with curses as he climaxed. Roy watched as the pleasure consumed Ed's features before his own release deep inside him.  
  
Both men lay entwining in arms over each other, not wanting to take their eyes off one another as they recover from their climatic highs.  
  
"I'm curious.." Roy brushing away any stands of golden hair covering his love's face.  
  
"About what?"  
  
"How I compared to that fantasy of yours."  
  
"Is this for a hope of inflating your ego?"  
  
The older man smirked and whispered. "I'm also curious as to what other fantasies you've had about me. "  
  
"I don't know Roy, you're an old man now, I don't want you to put your back out. After all every time I thought about you fucking me on a bed it was always more then once."  
  
The older man suddenly pinned Edward to the bed. "Is that a challenge? Because I assure you that I can keep this going for as long as it needs to."  
  
Ed smirked. "That's a pretty bold statement there care to put it to the test?"  
  
"With _absolute_ pleasure." He seductively replied.  
  
xXx  
  
Roy turned his head to look at the muscular back of his lover and subordinate. It was a different experience not waking up to someone draped over you with their head on your chest. He watched as the younger man's shoulder slightly raised with each intake of breath before descending, the most smallest of movements made the older man smile. It had finally happened, him and Ed together at long last, sure they'd officially been together but the true physical aspect wasn't completed until last night. So long both men had awaited to 'seal the deal' so to speak.  
  
Roy averted his eyes from the toned back of the Fullmetal alchemist to look over at his bedside clock. Grabbing the item to make sure the alarm was turned off before it could even make a sound. He replaced it on the side table and turned back to Ed, shifting towards the sleeping blonde he placed a kiss on his shoulder before placing an arm around him. When he didn't get any indication of the other man to be awake he continued to administer kisses on his arm, over the shoulder before reaching his neck.  
  
Ed moaned in protest before turning his head slightly to see what had awoken him from his slumber. His eyes still hazed with sleep, giving the older man the chance to plant a longing kiss onto the younger lips. As soon as they parted he resumed his usual position as Roy laced his hand with his.  
  
"We've got to get up." He whispered softly to his subordinate only to be greeted with another groan of protest from his love. He watched for a short while before removing himself from the bed and straight to the shower.  
  
Waking up with Roy was probably the best wake up ever, it was just a shame that they had probably a few hours sleeps before needing to head early into work to conclude the investigation. He would not have minded if they just slept a little longer, they only came back from Drachma yesterday. The blonde thought back to the night before and smiled. So long he had awaited for this moment, to be with Roy Mustang in every aspect. He did attempt to get up, only raising slightly from the ever so warm and comfortable bedding only to fall back down in tiredness. A few more minutes wouldn't hurt...  
  
Roy returned fresh and dressed from the shower to see the blonde had barely moved an inch since he left him sprawled on the bed with the covers now wrapped tightly around him. There was nothing the older man would have loved than to just stay in bed all day with him, but alas work needed to be done. Taking his side of the bed Roy propped his head on his arm and looked down at the peacefully sleeping blonde. It would be too cruel to disturb him, maybe he'd give him a by and let him come into work later, let him sleep. He thought of that for all of five seconds before he pinched the blonde's nostrils together. He happily waited a couple of seconds before Ed's arms started flailing, a sign for him release his hold and quickly place his arm back on his side.  
  
"What the hell" The blonde muttered out in an annoyed tone.  
  
"Major General Edward Elric is required to be present at Central headquarters in half an hour."  
  
"Major General Edward Elric is required to remain in bed." The words only just audible as he buries his face in the pillow.  
  
Roy chuckled to himself before running his hand through the blonde hair before leaning in an planting a kiss on Ed's temple. The young alchemist's head turned to face the older man, freeing an arm from underneath him he cupped the back of the general's head and pulled him down for a lingering kiss, which easily turned into a full blown make out session.  
  
Ed pulled back, looking at his superior dressed in full military attire minus the hat and boots. "You're wearing too many clothes." He pouted.  
  
Roy smiled as he raked his fingers through the blonde locks.  
  
"I'm serious." Ed continued.  
  
"And I'm serious, Fullmetal. I mean you could go naked, but it is cold outside and you'll be violating several military rules and arrested for public indecency if you even make it that far."  
  
"It wouldn't be so bad. I've had many thoughts about being naked in that office."  
  
Roy could feel the heat beginning to pool in his abdomen once more as Ed walked naked to the bathroom. "When this assignment is over you are going to tell me every single one of those fantasies."  
  
"It's a long list..."  
  
"We'd best get started as soon as possible then." Both men smirked before Ed closed the door.


	26. The end is in sight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Firstly guys I'm sorry it's taken nearly a month for this to come out. Real life just took everything out of me and then when I turned to this I had zero motivation. I planned to get the build up and reveal out asap, and then realised that a lot of things I was putting in the final chapter contradicted everything else in the story. *sigh* So I'm having to re read my own story to get the facts right.  
> So one more chapter to go! Who is the mysterious traitor? I'm curious as to who you guys think..

Ed opens the door to the records department and was taken back. This place was huge. He'd never needed to come to this part of headquarters, all his previous investigations were at the libraries. At least three storeys of bookcases overflowing with files and folders, no wall was left uncovered. He didn't know where to start. Luckily there was a reception desk in the center of room, which looked like Roy's desk on a good day. Hidden behind it all was the one woman how could help him.

"Hello? Sheska?"

A spectacled head popped up from the mounds of paper. "Ed? Edward Elric? You're back!"

"I've been back for a few weeks, just thrown straight into an assignment before I barely got a foot in the door."

"Oh, when Central collapsed."

"Yeah, Did you manage to retrieve all the files?" Looking to the stacks upon stacks of paper.

"Oh yes, we've only just manage to get everything in the right place again. Forgive my intrusion Edward, but it's not everyday a state alchemist drops by, is there something you need?"

"Yeah. Can you point me in the direction of the profiles of all military personnel."

"Of course I can, you are a Major General, you have clearance. It's on the second floor. You just go up those stairs, turn right and follow the corridor down and the stairs to the second floor shall be at the end. Then you need to walk over to those bookcases right there." Pointing to the ones above in clear view.

"And what about the files for the missing personnel be it absent without leave, deceased."

"The deceased are in alphabetical order among the military profiles. AWOL soldiers are secured in a locked cupboard, but your pocket watch will unlock it, you just need to push the crest into the engraving."

"Thanks Sheska." He began to follow the the directions the spectacled woman gave him. It would have been a great help if she could have assisted him, but it was an undercover assignment, secrecy needed to be adhered.

Arriving at his destination he pulled out the piece of paper will all the names for the requires files. Recovering the files of Geoffrey Barrett, Scott James and Henry Tafford - the original targets. He did try for Nicholas Berry and Ferren Dewry, but as he, Roy and Naython expected, they were aliases. Next the deceased of Henry Wheelan and Derek Hachmar. Before finding Naython Guilford's file. The blonde did catch sight of the file for one Roy Mustang, as tempting as it was he decided to leave it alone. All focus on finding information on the ringleader, not your own lover. With one last collection of files to acquire he pulled out his pocket watch, which Roy had only given back to him in the car park, and placed the military crest into the appropriate indentation. There was a quiet murmur of gears turning before the cupboard clicked, indicating that the unlock was successful. He opened the door to see files upon files of missing or AWOL soldiers, luckily for Ed they were all dated, unluckily the file he needed was the biggest of them all, starting from 1800 till the present. He wasn't going to let it phase him though. Taking the file he closed the cupboard shut, which locked itself and released his pocket watch.

It was going to be a long day. The blonde helped himself to a glass of Roy's scotch before taking a seat at his desk, on his chair. Sure the man was a higher rank, but he wouldn't mind as he rested his feet on the mahogany desk top, grabbing the first file and began to read.

xXx

His meeting with Grumman took a lot longer than he anticipated. it was mid afternoon by the time Mustang arrived back at his office. Ed had already gone through a large quantity of the documents he brought back from the records room, but there were still so much to do. But before the General could settle down to help the blonde there was an urgent knock at the door.

"Yes?"

The door opened. "Apologies for interrupting General Mustang, Major General Elric." The man saluted his two superior officers. "There is a prisoner by the name of Matlock in the holding cells demanding to see you."

It had only been a few hours since they put Guilford in the holding cells so if there was a demand it would have to have been serious. The two men didn't hesitate in going to see the false captive escorted by the messenger soon to be handed over to the jail guard.

The man saluted. "I am sorry sirs, I don't know where this man came from. There are two others further down, all I've been instructed by the Fuhrer is to not let them out, but if this one needs to see you I was to grant the request."

Mustang nodded and the guard unlocked the door. They looked in to see Guilford was visibly shaken by whatever had happened during the few hours of leaving him. His body curled down to his knees as his hands wrapped behind his head. Someone who was so calm and collected throughout the whole Drachma mission was now a nervous mess. No doubt seeing Guy, your friend and closest ally, killed right before your eyes wouldn't exactly have helped him.

The two state alchemists ushered each other in before the guard locked the cell and returned to his post, unwillingly to leave such high ranked officers on their own regardless state alchemist or not, but Ed had managed to talk him round.

"H-he visited me last night." The mutter just about audible.

"Who did?"

"The ringleader!" He yelled out and immediatly stood to his feet, causing the generals to quickly jump back, and began to pace around the cell.

"Did you get a good look at him?" Mustang followed the man with his eyes as Ed stood between the two. He may be their ally, but anyone could turn in an instant and right now he was Roy's bodyguard.

Naython shook his head. "It's was pitch black. You think I can see in the dark?!"

"What happened?" Roy remained calm unlike the Amestrian prisoner who couldn't decide whether to sit down, stand up or continue to pace around the small cell.

"He congratulated me, Berry and Dewry on our failure and looked forward to seeing us lined up opposite the firing squad." He turned to Roy only for Ed to hold back the man from touching his superior. "You need to get me out of here! Out of this country! If you don't then I'm a dead man for sure. I've helped you, now you help me!"

"Calm down, we'll get him. You won't have to run anywhere. Did he talk to the others?"

"How the hell am I supposed to know that!? I'm stuck in here!" Ed pushed the hysteric man back onto the old rickety bed the other side of the cell.

"Do you remember his voice?" Ed spoke in a calm, quiet and collective manner.

"Course I remember his voice!" Clearly Guilford didn't get the subtle hint to calm down in his behaviour.

"If we get recordings of all the officers in central can you identify it?" The man nodded. "Leave it with us, you'll be out of here by tomorrow evening."

Much to the dismay of Guilford that he'd have to be in the cell for at least twenty four hours longer he stayed seated, curling himself back into a ball as Ed and Roy left the cell. Roy walked on ahead, as Ed observed the false prisoner, as much as he wanted to give his team the day off they were now desperately needed to aid the generals in finally putting this investigation to rest.

xXx

Back in the offices everyone, bar from the injured Havoc, had gathered on the couches.

"I assure you went this investigation is finished you will get time off."

"Don't sweat it sir, we want this to end just as quickly as you do." Breda brushed off his General's apology as he reached over for a file. "You sure we can get this person outed by tomorrow Ed?"

"If we can get Guilford to ID the voice then it's as good as done, but there is still a small chance that it isn't him."

"That is true, but I have every confidence that your theory is spot on. We already have enough evidence to uncover the traitor, we just need to find out the identities of Berry and Dewry."

Sheska and Fuery cautiously walked through the door carrying a substantial amount of paper work. "Everything is finally here, just like you asked for Edward." Carefully placing the piles to the floor.

The blonde gave a relaxed smile "Thanks Sheska." Relieving her from the offices to head back to the records department.

Roy wasn't more pleased to know that the paperwork wasn't to add to the pile that was hidden away in the corner. "Care to explain?"

"Well we know that Dewry and Berry aren't alchemists neither the original Tafford and Barrett were State Alchemists. This is the entirety of soldiers in academy, working for and still in the military ranks dating back fifty years. We just need to find the link between them and our suspects."

"And where are you going?" He stopped the blonde in his tracks as he reached for the door handle.

"There are over two hundred personnel in this building. I need those recordings for tomorrow." He gave Roy a cheeky wink before heading out the offices.

It was going to be a long day as the General grabbed the top sheet of paper. He really didn't want to be investigating another officer under the title of treason again, especially someone he knew. He looked over to Riza full well knowing that regardless of the outcome the safety of the country was top priority.  
This was supposed to have stopped over six months ago. Yes he knew Amestris would constantly have enemies throughout the lands of Drachma, Creta and Aerugo. But people from Amestris itself? This wasn't the Homunculus brainwashing the greedy and desperate to play their little games, these were real people wanting to harm others because of something they didn't believe in. This country was changing, after the rule of King Bradley, for the better.

It took the entire day, but they had found what they were looking for. All that remained would be the results of the voice recordings.

Tomorrow would be the conclusion and this mission would finally be put to rest.

xXx

"Congratulations Edward!"

"Congratulations! Send my love to your brother"

"Another one? Did you ever tell your brother to slow down?"

"Fullmetal is this another one of your schemes for more time off?"

"At this rate you are going to be broke when Christmas comes around.."

"I'm sure Alphonse and Winry are delighted..ecstatic!"

"Have they not heard of contraception or is this intentional?"

. . . . . . . . . . . .

"Jean failing again? Why am I not surprised?"

"That's nothing new Ed. Jean is always bound to fail."

"Congratulations in never noticing your failings Havoc, better wear some protective gear next time!"

"She landed him in hospital? Ouch. That's some tough love I guess."

. . . . . . . . . . . .

"Failure is not an option, but I know you will succeed."

"Fullmetal, you failing a mission is like Havoc successfully getting a girlfriend."

"I have every confidence that the conclusion will come swiftly."

"Failure? I never know that was in your Dictionary Ed."

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

Roy looked over to his subordinate, who was slouched against the arm rest of the couch as his recordings were played. He had to say he was impressed as to how he got these reactions. Be it the false news ( Or so he hoped ) of his brother and Winry having yet another baby, Jean's love life or even a more serious note of failing an assignment. He was well known throughout Central Headquarters, even if he didn't remember the names or faces of the soldiers he didn't let it show so no one would have been suspicious.  
Across from the way Guilford hands linked together resting in front of his mouth. His eyes were closed in concentration, trying to pick up the voice that he had heard in the night. Him and Ed just waited as patiently as they could as the tape was played over and over again. Four voices remained of the two hundred plus all sounded rather similar, but each was distinctive.

It didn't take much longer to make his decision.

"This one."

Ed looked down to the list of names for the name of whom the voice belonged "Are you absolutely sure?"

"Positive, one hundred percent, this is the ring leader."

Ed showed the name of who Guilford had chosen to Roy. The man immediatly rose from his seat and opened his office door to address his subordinates.

"Hawkeye, Falman and Fuery can you get Berry and Dewry from their cells. Breda, it's been confirmed, can you escort the person I mentioned here please?"

He closed the door and calmly walked over to his desk, taking a seat and sat in silence. The traitor has now been one hundred percent verified.

"What now?"

"Now we wait, but for reasons to keep you safe you still need to look like a prisoner." The man nodded as Ed cuffed the man's wrists behind his back. "When this part is over we'll get you out of here. It is a shame though, you'd be a valuable asset to the team."

"I've done enough undercover work to last a life time, retirement is for the best."

Ed got up and walked over to Mustang, who was carefully going through the files as to make sure that nothing important for this reveal was left out. The blonde knew he already read through them several times this morning alone. He placed a comforting hand discreetly onto the older man's back.

"You ready?" He muttered.

His love nodded as a knock on the door initialised the start of the reveal. Falman and Hawkeye bring in the man by the alias of Nicholas Berry. If glares could kill everyone in that room would have been dead instantly as he took his seat on the couch opposite the now crestfallen looking Guilford. It did make a change that 'Berry' wasn't yelling out every curse word under the sun like he did in Drachma, the silence in the room was surprisingly blissful, until the next knock sounded. All heads turned to see 'Dewry' enter with Fuery closely behind and placing the prisoner on the opposite side of the couch from Guilford, himself taking the center seat, separating him and Guilford. Roy carefully watched the newest arrival, noticing how he couldn't stop twitching and fidgeting in his seat, the nervousness very clearly showing.

The general sat back in his seat with the file of the ringleader in his lap, tracing the calligraphy with his fingertip, before looking up to Ed. The blonde had changed position, now leaning against his desk with his back to the others and watching Roy's every moment.

After a while the final knock sounded. All eyes turned to the door as the handle was pushed down and the wooden panel opened. It was like slow motion as Heymans walked in first, holding the door as the traitor stepped through. The man paused and looked at the occupants in the room, was he expecting a salute? Good luck getting that any time now. All he got were confused looks from the captives and brief glances from Roy's unit. Reluctantly Breda placed a chair at the edge of the coffee table facing the desk as The Strong Arm Alchemist Alex Armstrong closed the door behind him and remained standing guard. If anyone tried to escape they would quite easily fail. The traitor took his seat, Roy could feel the anger burning up inside him.

The room was set, everyone was here, and now the time to conclude their undercover investigation had begun..

 


	27. Investigation closed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am sorry, really really sorry. These couple of months have been hectic. Several re writes of this chapter because the original planned ending was just plain rubbish and boring. I feel this isn't up to standard at all, but it's the best I can do at this moment in time.

 

* * *

_After a while the final knock sounded. All eyes turned to the door as the handle was pushed down and the wooden panel opened. It was like slow motion as Heymans walked in first, holding the door as the traitor stepped through. The man paused and looked at the occupants in the room, was he expecting a salute? Good luck getting that any time now. All he got were confused looks from the captives and brief glances from Roy's unit. Reluctantly Breda placed a chair at the edge of the coffee table facing the desk as The Strong Arm Alchemist Alex Armstrong closed the door behind him and remained standing guard. If anyone tried to escape they would quite easily fail. The traitor took his seat, Roy could feel the anger burning up inside him._

_The room was set, everyone was here, and now the time to conclude their undercover investigation had begun.._

"Now that everyone's here we shall begin. As you all know me, and my unit, were sent undercover to Drachma to capture four people involved with the destruction of Central Headquarters. Our search for two of our original targets turned out to be a dead end, with both men now deceased, instead we were led to these three men. Nicholas Berry, Ferren Dewry and Frazen Matlock..." He made sure Guilford's identity would be kept unknown to the others until the time was right. "...you have been arrested for treason against the country of Amestris, plotting to destroy the country and it's residents by forms of fire power and explosives."

As much as Mustang would have loved to just get straight to the point and charge these people, as well as giving the traitor a piece of his mind...and ignition cloth, it was best that they took this as professionally and law abiding as possible.

Ed took over the reins, wanting to get straight to the point.

"Nicholas Berry and Ferren Dewry." The two men in question looked to the blonde, Berry believing it was better to glare at his captors. "Being ex military we have records of every soldier who was accepted, state alchemist or not. Unsurprisingly we couldn't find either files of your names, but we expected that from the start. But we did come across the names of Nicholas Gretway, Ferren Hyth, Veronica Berry and Greitz Dewry. " Both men's expressions stiffened before looking to each other. "Are we correct in thinking you took the names of these four people as your new identities? These four people were killed in an explosion when they went to investigate abnormal behaviour coming from the small village of Xyrintres in the West. It is unknown what happened to cause the explosion that claimed their lives in the seemingly quiet town, the resulting conclusion was that is was possibly a gas explosion, a tragic accident."

"It was not an accident!" The man known as Dewry quickly rose to his feet in protest before he is ordered to sit back in his seat.

"Keep quiet!" His associate snarled across from him.

The other man refused to listen to his comrade. "They were intentionally killed! It was all a set up!"

"Shut up!"

"We are going to be killed anyway! Have you forgotten what the sentence for treason is?" Knowing the severity of their crime would result in nothing else but the death penalty.

"Would you care to tell us your side of this story?" Roy rested his elbows on his desk and placed his conjoined hands in front of his face awaiting for the story. Everyone else in the room waited in silence, all eyes focused as the man begun to speak.

"We all graduated the academy at the same time, they were stationed in the south and us in the east." Indicating to his colleague. "We never lost contact with each other, and whenever all of us were called into central we'd always make time for one another. Everything was going great, we all enjoyed our jobs and were proud of serving our country. But it all changed over two years ago. One night in a bar not far from here we were approached by Brigadier General Edison, with a proposition for us. He lead us to a private room in the back and told us of a plan. Those who agreed to it would be pushed through the ranks and granted immortality." Roy's unit looked at each other fully well knowing the details, desperation and lengths they went to achieve their goal. But hearing of Edison seemingly choosing a random group of soldiers was something new.

"Did you have any links of contact with Edison prior to this meeting?" Remembering the small link Falman found when researching the missing targets.

"No, we were stationed in the East, the others in the South. Central was the best place to meet, but none of us knew Edison prior to that meeting."

"What did he ask you to do?"

"He told us to think about it. We didn't want to go along with it, but in reality we didn't have a choice. Just wanting to keep our jobs, and fearing what would become of us if we didn't, we reluctantly agreed, but the others point blank refused."

"And they got killed because they knew of the plan."

'Dewry' nodded sadly. "We never believed it was an accident and were pressing Edison on what information he had. He said he didn't know, but if we knew what was good for us we should keep our noses out and mouths closed."

"What did they require you to do?"

"Just follow what they told us, ignore a certain document here and there, turn a blind eye to certain incidents. But they were getting more active in the last year." Roy and the unit knowing fully well what happened during that time. "We never wanted to be part of this group in the first place, we were cowards for not following the others with their refusal. But we stayed until it got too much as we had to flee, taking the chance and accepting an assignment to any foreign land to get away from here. Luckily there was an undercover and information gathering mission to Drachma.  
We didn't want anything to do with Amestris until Gavin approached us with a proposition, to get revenge on those responsible for the deaths of our comrades."

"So Gavin was the ringleader?"

"Well..I think so. I don't really know that much.." He looked to the man opposite.

"I took on that role on his request." 'Berry' interrupted as was finally co operating and admitting defeat in keeping silence. "He knew of other ex Amestrians in Drachma, thought it would be best if one of us took the reigns. We gained their trust and they joined willingly. But to this day I still don't understand why I was asked. Vic, Frazen and Harrison were Amestrians and they were in the group long before we arrived.."

Frazen provided the answer he was looking for. "Because you two were new, meaning more up to date information. Not to mention you were ranked higher than us. You had more discipline. It was what we needed. Gavin was not leader material, none of us were."

"So your sole purpose of joining that movement was to obtain revenge against the officers who killed your comrades?" Mustang continued the line of questioning.

"Yes." Both men replied.

"And what if I were to tell you that the men responsible were killed or incarcerated in a coup which happened over six months ago."

"When... Führer Bradley was killed?" They questioned.

"The very same."

The two men looked to each other. "Edison?"

"Died in his isolation cell in the Briggs fort, painfully from what I heard. We would be more than happy to go through all the names of those involved another time if you wish to ease your minds."

Everyone could see how relieved the two men were hearing that Edison was gone since he was the one who approached them, and no doubt threatened them, in the first place.  
The story of these two men had come out, Roy could sympathise in some ways wanting to get revenge remembering the hatred that boiled in him to find and decimate Maes' killer. His was one person, the two men in front of him had four.

"We would like that General Mustang, to give us peace of mind before we are tried for our crimes."

The general looked down to the files on his desk. "Even though I now know your true identities from the information you have given us, can you please confirm your real names."

'Nicholas Berry' spoke first, swiftly followed by 'Ferren Dewry.'

"Colonel Geoffrey Barrett, East Headquarters."

"Major Henry Tafford, East Headquarters." Both men looked like they wanted to salute him but alas the handcuffs rejected that idea.

Two of their original four targets had been captured, the best result they could get with James and Prassen deceased. It could not have been done without the help of the deceased Henry and the cooperation of Naython. Part of this case was closed, two men wanting justice for their fallen comrades at the hands of their employers. Forced to flee to another country in the hope of starting a new page, but keeping those four friends close. In a vulnerable state they were talked round into joining the Drachman fraction that would help them with their revenge. A fraction led in Amestris by him...  
Roy looked towards the Central command traitor who sat quietly and patiently in his seat as the two men told their story, listening in like he was supposed to be there, well he may have been if it was under different circumstances.  
They made eye contact, Mustang sat in silence, the whole room sat in silence. Barrett and Tafford the only ones who didn't know who this man was were looking between the General and the man opposite.

"I trusted you..." He finally spoke. "For years I trusted you." The traitor seemed taken back by the General's words. "And all this time you were plotting to destroy the very country we promised to re build. Using Amestris' own soldiers to do your dirty work."

"Wait, wait, wait." Barrett interrupted. "THIS is who we've been answering to? This is the real leader? Frazen, did you know about this?"

The man in question shook his head, not even looking up to meet the traitor in the eye. "I knew it was someone here, but I didn't know it was _him_."

"I'm afraid so. You shared a headquarters with this man, even though I never met you when I was stationed there I'm pretty sure you two would have crossed paths with him on more then one occasion."

"But isn't he.."

Mustang nodded "Yes he is." Answering the question before Barrett even got to finish, still glaring at the man across the room.

"I'm sorry, I'm not following." The traitor finally spoke up.

Mustang finally continued. "Whether or not you admit it we have more than enough evidence to convict you of this crime."

"What crime? I have not done anything that wasn't in the interests of Amestris."

"You are formally under arrest for treason."

The man quickly stood to his feet and begun to head towards the door. "I don't have time for this. You waste my time on such a ridiculous matter when I have much more pressing matters to attend to."

Armstrong blocked his path. "Sir. This isn't exactly making you like an innocent man."

"Sit down Grumman!" Roy ordered his only commanding officer.

The Führer looked to his grand daughter, who couldn't even bare to look at him. Ed couldn't possibly know what was going through the woman's head at this time. Fullmetal knew of Grumman, but not to the extent practically everyone else in the room did. They were all at Eastern headquarters together. Roy spoke fondly of the man from time to time. They grew up by age and rank together. Roy gave him the Führership whilst he was blind from the gate, he trusted this man greatly. All the blonde had done was see him for five minutes before signing off for six months and then returned after that six months was done.

The Führer took his seat once more. "You're treading on mighty thin ice here Roy. To accuse me of such acts you better have some concrete evidence or you and your entire unit will be court marshalled."

"I handed you the title of Führer to help this country. I did not offer the rank to be abused as it was by your predecessor! I have a substantial amount of evidence to convict you of your crimes."

"Let's hear this substantial evidence then shall we?" Adjusting his spectacles.

"The day of the collapse I knew for a fact that you were present in central command that morning. Whilst me and Edward risked our lives to get everyone to safety you were already gone. It wasn't until we began the investigation that we find out you went into hiding."

"I did not go into hiding. That day I left for a conference with Armstrong here."

Roy looked to his long time ally, who nodded in conformation. "That is true...but when we got there it had been cancelled. Apparently word was sent out over a week before stating this."

"Which I never received." The Führer responded.

That was a lie straight away. When the most powerful man in the country was to leave headquarters for something such as a conference the persons hosting would have definitely made sure he got the message. He knew it was cancelled and made sure the attack would happen on the same day. He was trying to cover his tracks, but Mustang was going to make sure the traitor got everything that was coming to him.

"It has also come to my attention that whilst myself and the unit were risking our lives in Drachma you made an awful lot of phone calls to an outside line, care to elaborate?"

"Private calls."

"To Drachma?"

Even Naython looked up in surprise.

"For someone who is suppose to have an extensive knowledge of everything about this country it was poor judgement not to believe there would be records when ringing from the Führer's private line."

"This is ridiculous!" The commanding officer's brow deeply furrowed.

"The final nail in the coffin Grumman is that when we finally returned from the north you immediatly sent me Breda, Falman and Fuery home for rest."

"Yes, because you've had a long an exhausting mission."

"What you were actually doing was taking advantage, that no one was around, to go and intimidate the men we had just put into the cells. And before you could say that it could have been anyone you were the only person we told that there were people in the holding cell."

"Now wait just a minute!"

"You intimidated the wrong person Grumman!"

"Prove it was me!"

"Remember when Ed came up to you and told you of his fear of failing the mission? That was a ploy to get the recordings of everyone in central command. Before we even left Drachma we were informed the ringleader of this whole thing was a high ranked soldier in the military. Ed went round every single person and his hard work was not in vain. Your voice was verified by the very person you tried to intimidate! We never even told you the prisoners names, but you named all three when you tried your scare tactics. This was your downfall."

Hawkeye's grandfather sat back in his chair. "Is that all you've got? One persons word against mine? That isn't going to hold up during a court marshal. I'll be released without charge and these three will go in front of the firing squad. Good bye to your unit, military career and a life in isolation for you Roy Mustang."

"I don't think you've been properly introduced to the undercover officer you failed to intimidate. Also the very same under cover officer who you refused re entry back to his homeland every time he requested."

"So it's a man with a grudge because I told him to do his job."

"Guilford is the man who assisted us in Drachma."

"Guilford?" He looked to the man who was still watching him. "That name sounds familiar."

"I assure you Führer Grumman you do not know me." He quickly replied before suddenly turning to Ed and Roy "I've done what you've asked me to, let me go now before he kills me."

There was a long pause before Roy smirked. "But you've already been killed."

"Yes killed, yes. Pretend I died and let me live under another identity."

Grumman recalled the memory forever imprinted in his mind. "The war was tough on all of us. Seeing friend after friend being killed, a never ending slaughter of Amestrians and Ishvalens. I was sent to a desolate area of the field where we had lost contact with the guard station. When I arrived there, not a person was in sight, just a poor young man clinging to life. His wounds were atrocious, his body cut open his organs pouring out of the gaping hole. He was trying to seal the wound up, but he had lost so much blood he barely made any difference. There was no medic that would make it here in time to help him. I did the just thing, the man was already dead, but I couldn't leave him to die in such a horrendous state. I took my gun and shot him, ending the pain to be at peace."

Guilford suddenly turned back round to the rest of the group. All eyes were fixated on him. He turned back to see Roy with a state alchemist profile open in front of him.

"Naython Guilford the Lifeblood Alchemist. Specialises in medical alchemy and the re attachment of removed limbs. Stationed at Western command. Took state exam when he was only 13 years old, the youngest at the time. Was a highly credited medic. Died in the Ishvalen war by bullet to the head by ally aged 25 years. Promoted two ranks for his bravery and work during the cause." He looked at the now staring Amestrian in front of him. "So care to tell us who you are?"

Guilford looked at him in a state of disbelief. "Is this some kind of sick joke?" He looked everyone in the eye one at a time. "After all I have done for you, this is how you replay me? Guy died back in that tunnel because of the information I was giving you!"

"Funny that." Ed chimed in "You didn't even move to try and help him. Shock is a horrible thing, I've experienced it myself, we all have. But when it's someone you truly care about you do everything in your power to save them regardless of how futile it may be. You ,supposedly a medical alchemist, would have done just that. You clearly aren't the man you said you were."

"I AM Naython Guilford! That there.." Pointing with his head to the file in front of Roy "..is all fabricated." He now pointed to the Führer. "He is responsible for this. The recording proved it!"

"Right, the recording...the owner of that voice is right behind you."

He turned around to see Breda putting his hand up instead of Grumman like was first believed.

"You see even though Ed had claimed to have collected over two hundred different voices in reality only four were used. Myself, Breda, Falman and Fuery. You said the voice was one hundred percent the one that intimidated you. No one really visited you that night, did they?"

He gritted his teeth.

Ed had never stopped observing the man since the first time in Drachma. Something never seemed right with him and the blonde couldn't put his finger on it. It was why he was so upset when Roy went to the final meeting with Henry on his own before before his brush with death at the hands of the man in front of him. But now all the pieces were snugly fitting together and now it was time to bring him down once and for all.

"Henry knew didn't he? You were the same as him, helping out the real undercover investigators. You found out what he was doing, helping the fabled Fullmetal and Flame alchemists and you wanted in. What more then a rewarding prize then beating two high ranked officers at their own game. But he found out didn't he? He came across something that was going to blow your whole operation wide open. You went to his house to dispose of him. Upon arrival you listened into our meeting, quickly changing the tone by knocking on the man's door. But you knew there was a chance that Henry could have exposed you during that small time frame. I have to say it was quite clever how you saved your own skin."

_"Oh I think you do know what I'm talking about" Shoving the other man hard into the wall "I've known since the start what you are." Plunging the knife deep into his chest "A traitor." Before slowly turning the blade ninety degrees making sure the man felt excruciating pain before pulling it out allowing the stream of crimson liquid to quickly be absorbed by the man's clothing. "A pathetic traitor."_   
_"Y-y-you're no b-better..." Taking a strangled gasp._

"Henry's last words. When you first revealed yourself as a helper to Amestris I thought his last words were saying how you were a traitor to your cause. But he meant a traitor like himself, does any means necessary to save his own skin and not caring for fellow countryman."

"Getting the sheer amount of guns and explosives that you and your team were going to bring to Amestris was no doubt some very dangerous work. But being in the military would easily compensate for that." It was one of only two things in this man's fabricated story that they actually believed. "Guns seemingly going missing, you said yourself that you were there for a few years. Take a gun one month, explosives another, sure people may notice that something has gone missing, but knowing the Drachman army for every one thing that goes missing they'd no doubt replace it with two more. When you had all the equipment you needed you made sure you were dispatched from the military as quickly as possible."

"I helped Amestris! I anonymously sent messages back to the Briggs fort regarding Drachman moves and heavy altering any Amestrian messages that could prove fatal for the country!" His pleas of innocence fell on deaf ears.

"Which you did intentionally because you didn't want Drachma to bring this country down, because you wanted to do it yourself."

"Not to mention you gave us false information concerning the escape route." Ed chimed in.

"I specifically wrote on the sheet that the information was correct at the time!"

"We would have believed that if we didn't already know about the tunnel. You see when we arrived in Drachma we came across a multitude of problems which led me and Fullmetal into a hidden hatch to escape from the capture of Drachman soldiers. The day before we received the information Fullmetal actually suggested to go check the tunnel out since it made sense that it could be used as the means for escape since vehicles would be needed."

Ed explained. "The site you marked as an entrance point was non existent so me and the absent Havoc entered through the only hatch we knew. We found the vehicles two hundred meters from where you placed them on the map. If we did happen to find a route in from your marked area all we would have come across was a concrete wall, separating you and us.  
I went up the ladder nearby to see where this unmarked hatch led to. I was expecting a dark alley, an abandoned warehouse what I didn't expect was a house. Specifically your house. All this time you were hiding the entrance to the tunnel, which explained why Guy was hysterical when I went to go search the living room before the meeting. He thought I was going to find the hidden entrance, but you were so calm knowing I wouldn't find even a single trace.  
Now what was the most interesting was this wall, that I didn't even expect it to be fake, but just before I left to return to the others the light caught something. A transmutation circle. Even though I can't use alchemy any more I still retain the knowledge. This circle wasn't for constructional purposes. That circle was meant to do harm. If we were placed at the other side of the wall and heard the vehicles start General Mustang would have de-constructed the wall and you would have activated the circle."

The fake Guilford just carried on with his innocent persona and it was pissing Ed off, heck it was pissing every one off. The blonde was so close to letting his fists fly, not caring if the man couldn't defend himself. Not only did he nearly kill Roy in their meeting Ed also made sure he took the blame when Roy had no chance and fled, passing out in the freezing weather.

"So that's why he was hesitating.." Barrett spoke out, causing all eyes to look at him, apart from Ed's. " I can verify that he stood in the corner for a couple of minutes acting strangely. Guy joked with us that it was a sentimental moment, that he was finally going back home and just needed a moment for it to sink in."

Seems his theory was right on the mark, keeping his eyes firmly on the man as he positioned himself right in front of the traitor. He saw the flash of anger in his eyes for a split second aimed towards his now clearly ex colleague. Now they just need to find out why he was doing this, it was the only thing they hadn't properly worked out. Him and Roy both believed it was something to do with Grumman, but now Ed wasn't so sure. He hoped that it was just his personal feelings for his commanding officer getting in the way, but every attempt on Roy's life in Drachma always came back to the man in front of him.

"So you're an alchemist." Roy took over the questioning once more. "Bit strange that you're just a soldier, no record of applying for state exam. They wouldn't allow alchemists to join the ranks at the bottom so you were clearly keeping it hidden. Guilford found out didn't he? That's why you killed him, so you could remain hidden."

There was a lapse in the blonde's concentration. He was heading back to his original place, but made the mistake of turning his back to the prisoner.

Within a split second Matlock jumped through his cuffed arms, bringing them to the front before raising the limbs over Ed, bringing the interlinked chains down and over his neck. The blonds hands rushed to his throat to try and ease the suffocation. He could hear the other soldiers in the room commanding his captor to let him go. Riza was dual wielding her hand guns and Roy was ready to snap his fingers at a moments notice.

"You do anything and I swear I'll crush his throat!"

Ed tried using his skills at hand to hand combat to break out of the hold. This should have been easy, but no matter what he did he couldn't break free. How was this man, so scrawny, suddenly so strong?

"Let him go Cresh!" Roy revealed the name that was printed on the file that was sitting next to Naython's.

"Ah Cresh, a name I haven't heard in so long. Fair dues you did your homework General Mustang, but I didn't kill Naython because he found out about my alchemy." Squeezing the pressure on Ed's throat even more.

"No, you've run out of options, which is why you are hiding behind one of my men in a last gasp effort to escape. Desperate people do separate things."

Ed used the strength in his arms to lift his legs, giving Hawkeye a clear shot to at least disable his movements. Two shots, one for each knee. The traitor screamed, collapsing to the floor, the blonde along with him. But the pressure around Fullmetal had loosened giving him his probably only chance to escape, and he took it. Sliding out from the still screaming man's grasp he quickly rose to his feet with the help of Roy and pulled beside the General.

Several things swept through Ed's head. A state alchemist with unbelievable strength would have to be from the Armstrong family, and he definitely didn't look like the siblings or have any other traits and in all honestly Alex would have said something immediatly. That family was a close as you can get, apart from Olivier, who retained her distance up north.  
He definitely didn't have automail limbs, but even then that doesn't give you brute streng-.

"Chimera." He choked out receiving stunned looks all around. It all made sense even though a chimera has aspects of the animal they were infused with they were strong and powerful. He'd fought them, allied with them, heck some even helped the military.

Cresh gave out a spluttered laugh. "I hate people with brains. Always have to spoil the surprise." He sat up against the wall placing his hands on one of his bleeding knees.  
Even if he changed into his Chimera form he wouldn't have been able to escape with his mortal legs already severely injured and if he used his arms Roy would be ready in an instant to burn. He had no physical aspects of a bird so wings were out of the question.

"You worked for the Homunculus?" .

"Those over achievers? Gimme a break. I had more sense then the others."

"Care to tell us your story?"

"I never volunteered, it was my punishment for hiding my alchemy. That's all I'm saying."

"How did they find out?"

"Is my punishment to bleed to death on this floor?"

Roy walked closer to the man with a metal chair. With the help of Armstrong and Breda they placed him on the seat before cuffing an arm to each of the back chair legs. The Flame transmuted one of the metal back supports to go across the chest of the injured man to make sure he was secured.

Getting information out of the man was going to be more troublesome. Mind you they weren't expecting Tafford and Barrett to open up so freely as they did. Their trigger was people who they were close to and had known for years. Cresh killed his own family years ago there was no way talking about them would make him spill some sort of information. There was only one option left and the only person they knew he was close to. If he refused this there would be extra pressure on his already badly injured knees.

The General turned and muttered to Ed.

"What did you say!?" Of course Roy made sure that is was loud enough for him to hear.

"I said the wrong man died in Drachma. Guy would have actually co operated with us knowing he had no chance of freedom."

"Like hell he would have!"

Ed joined in "We should have told Gavin it was you who was giving us information. Guy would still be alive now."

"Don't you dare talk of him like you knew him! State Alchemists killed him! _You_ killed him!"

Roy shook his head "No, you killed him. You got him to do all your errands whilst you just sat back and did nothing and look where that got him. He's dead in a freezing tunnel under the streets of Drachma. Will he even get a burial? Not unless someone stumbles across that tunnel purely accidental and sees the bodies."

"Guy was the only one who was not fazed by what he saw. The only person not to scream and point a gun at me. The only person I could rely on. We agreed together instead of wallowing in self pity we'd do something about it. Kill any and all Amestrian state alchemists, they ruined my life, I was going to ruin theirs!"

"What happened to you was years ago. State Alchemists are not like that any more. Everyone associated with chimera experiments during that time would have highly been likely the very same people who killed Barrett and Tafford's colleagues as well. They have been dealt with."

"You have no proof. There is always corruption. I hid my alchemy and I got found out, sent to a lab. I didn't volunteer, I was forced, then thrown back to the front lines when I couldn't control this new transformation. Thanks to those state alchemists I ended up killing Naython and the rest of the squad. My wife...my children.. How would you feel having no control over your actions. I watched as this other form killed my family and dragged my son out into the garden and threw him over the fence like it was nothing!"

The room fell silent for a few moments.

"That's why you attacked this very building."

"If those two useless idiots did as they were told we could have infiltrated so much earlier. All of you would have been killed in the rubble. I asked for an explosion not a gentle collapse."

There was one thing Ed really needed to know. "You had the chance to kill General Mustang when you interrupted his and Henry's meeting.."

"Too much time was wasted dealing with Henry. Which is why I asked him to come to my house. I didn't expect he'd bring you with him, so my options were very limited. It was then I knew I'd have to change the plan. I can't take on two alchemists at the same time, especially two as well known as yourselves. If I knew you couldn't transmute any more I would have taken you both out then and there in that house."

"So the transmutation circle in the tunnel?"

"If you heard the engines, you would have transmuted the wall to get through. I would activate the circle and killed each and every one of your unit and the sight would have been absolutely beautiful..."

The state alchemists of today were nothing like the sick and twisted individuals that ruined this man's life. But his hatred was something that wasn't going to disappear over the course of a week, months or years.. A permanent killing instinct made sure he had no normal life even if he tried. One of the many results of the atrocious things Bradley did during his time as Führer.

Mustang looked towards the present day Führer, the man clearly deep in thought and processing the information which had been given. He looked back towards Cresh, who himself was staring back at him. He could see the hatred towards him in his eyes, the pure disgust of a state alchemist standing before him. He snarled showing his fangs to everyone in the room. Riza saw it too and raised her handguns back at the prisoner.

He was slowly transforming. His need and desire to kill a State Alchemist so very clear to see, the target to be the man he failed to kill whilst in Drachma.

"Sir." Roy called out to his superior, breaking the older man's concentration.

Grumman positioned his glasses to get a good look as to what was unfolding before him.

He was snarling now, saliva slowly dripping from his mouth. He pulled his shoulders back and pushed his chest against the metal rod, the creak of the metal straining against the pressure. As soon as the bar broke Roy quickly clapped his hands together and pressed them to the floor, a container of concrete formed around the chimera as the being screamed. It was a noise none of the people in that room had ever heard before in their entire life. Just what was he? There was a distinctive canine change, but then that noise is not what they make. Just what had those Alchemists in that laboratory made that night? Was the punishment to go through the pain of multiple transmutations? Cresh was pounding against the concrete prison, so strongly Roy had to transmute another, and thicker, barricade around the previous. 

"As much as I want to see what they did to him he is beyond help." Grumman looked to Roy, who knew what had to be done as the others left the room leaving him, Ed and Grumman. As much as it would have been better to do this in a more open environment the danger this person held even if he was incarcerated regardless of injury was too great. With the snap of his fingers and pained scream arose from the container as the chimera known as Cresh Vlawnik was incinerated.

\-----

When the day drew to a close he dismissed the rest of his unit to actually have time to themselves after their constant work in Drachma. Mustang sat at the desk of his subordinate and lover whilst the blonde sat on top as the last of the documentation that required his signature was placed in his office. The three men saluted their superior officers before closing the door behind them.

Ed jumped off the desk and took a look. They way the blonde eyebrows appeared much higher on his head and the way his eyes widened told the whole story.

Roy dreaded what it looked like but hesitantly rose to his feet to take a look. He really wished he didn't. One narrow walkway to his desk, everything else was completely covered. Each pile stacked roughly to the hight of his knee. Within an instant he quickly closed the door in a hope that all of those would just disappear by the time he'd open the room the next day.

"You want me to help you with them?" Ed questioned

Roy shook his head and smiled "Then I'd never get anything done because you're just too distracting." He cupped Ed's face in his hand and briefly kissed him. "Me and you alone in the office for a considerably long period of time." He kissed him again, letting his lips linger on the blondes that little bit longer. "I'd never get anything done." Before heading for the door to grab Ed's coat.

The blonde followed him, pressing them both gently against the door as he captured his loves lips, reaching into the older man's side trouser pocket to fish out the keys to lock his office door. When he returned the whole reason they couldn't be alone for a long period of time was shown as when he placed the keys back into the man's pocket his hand slowly glided to the side ever so slightly touching the Flame's crotch before pulling his hand out to take his coat.

"Yours?"

Roy nodded and both men quickly made their way out.

\---------

Cresh Vlawnik was facing the death penalty for treason alone, but along with the murders of Henry, Prassen, James, two counts of attempted murder of Roy Mustang and one count each for the attempted murder of his entire squad. His role in the attempted murder of the central state military command. Not to mention the deaths of Naython Guilford, wife Valerie Vlawnik, children Gregory Vlawnik and Heather Vlawnik amongst others added to the list of offences. Even if he hadn't transformed that day the result would still have been death.  
His file was updated and placed where only the Führer may reveal it's contents. 

News of his capture and sentence were published in the newspaper, but only the relevant and basic information was released.

For Tafford and Barrett they welcomed their sentence of two years for the role they played during the time they left Amestris. A compassionate sentence for two men that only wanted justice for their fallen comrades with the option of when they were released to re join the military, stripped of their ranks and start back at the bottom.

As for Roy and Ed, it may have been a romance that took forever in the making, but it was something that was never going to end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This technically isn't the end because there's a certain 'list' that needs to be done. *cackles*


End file.
